Luyolo Mkentane
JOHANNESBURG: Top SACP and ANC officials were locked in a meeting yesterday to thrash out their differences in the wake of a recent fallout over the issue of state capture and the municipal elections’ candidate lists.
And almost simultaneously, in what could be an effort to appease the communists, newly appointed KwaZulu-Natal Premier Willies Mchunu appointed SACP provincial secretary Themba Mthembu as Agriculture and Rural Development MEC in his anticipated cabinet reshuffle.
Independent Media has, however, reliably learnt Mthembu was instructed not to immediately accept the offer until other issues going “beyond appointments” are addressed.
SACP national spokesperson Alex Mashilo said the meeting at the ANC’s Luthuli House headquarters in Johannesburg was aimed at discussing developments which took place since the groundbreaking Constitutional Court judgment on President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla upgrades.
The party announced on Sunday it would not endorse the “corrupting of the ANC processes”, in which some candidates were allegedly imposed on communities.
Among other issues, the SACP has also complained of being “sidelined” in provinces such as KZN, where disputes regarding the candidate list processes have led to political killings.
Meanwhile, Willies Mchunu, who replaced Senzo Mchunu as premier recently, reportedly said Mthembu’s appointment was based on his understanding and experience in the agriculture and rural development portfolio committee and nothing else.
The appointment was believed to have been made due to concerns of a divided ANC and its impact on the August 3 elections.
Provincial chairperson Sihle Zikalala referred questions to provincial spokesperson Mdumiseni Ntuli, who said the ANC did not appoint comrades “to appease them”.
“We expect the SACP to campaign for all our candidates because they are a product of the ANC’s credible processes.”
ANC spokesperson Khusela Sangoni said the party would issue a statement later.