ANC cracks the whip over outspoken Khoza

Makhosi Khoza Photo: ANA Pictures

Makhosi Khoza Photo: ANA Pictures

Published Jul 20, 2017

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Factional battles within the ANC have allowed “ill-discipline” to flourish. This is the view of political analyst Bheki Mngomezulu.

He was speaking about the KwaZulu-Natal ANC having taken a decision to institute disciplinary measures against MP Makhosi Khoza.

“It took long for the ANC to act because disciplining her would have seemed like she is being targeted on factional lines, not because she broke the rules of the organisation,” Mngomezulu claimed.

He said that judging by Khoza’s conduct, it was obvious that “it would come to this point”.

Mngomezulu said the ANC had been strategic in not acting on the matter promptly.

“It would have been easy to say action has been taken because she is in the faction that wants (President Jacob) Zuma out, not because she didn’t follow party rules,” he said.

He suggested the matter be handled in a delicate manner.

“Any negligence in handling this issue will have a negative impact on the entire ANC.

“Remember the ANC in KZN is not acting in isolation,” Mngomezulu said.

He said the party was clear that members could not take decisions that were against party directives and that the ANC in KZN is handling the matter only because Khoza was their deployee to Parliament.

“It is standard procedure in every political party that once a party takes a position, members vote according to the party position because they are in Parliament to execute the mandate of the party,” he said.

Mngomezulu said MPs could raise issues during discussions within the party but they would injure party unity if they spoke out independently against a party directive in public.

Luthuli House launched a blistering attack on its outspoken MP  yesterday, when it said she had behaved like a “runaway fire”.

Khoza’s home province of 
KZN was even more scathing, charging her with indiscipline – a move that could result in her being withdrawn from Parliament if found guilty. 

 Khoza has in recent months broken ranks with the party and openly campaigned for a vote of no confidence against party president Zuma to be conducted through a secret ballot on August 8.

The latest attack on Khoza came after she shared a public platform with some of the fiercest critics of Zuma at Rhema Bible Church and joined them in their call for him to step down. 

ANC spokesperson Zizi Kodwa yesterday slammed Khoza for showing gross disrespect to the party’s disciplinary code.

“Dr Khoza was a delegate at the party’s policy conference where a number of issues were discussed including state capture. A number of people spoke out against corruption at the conference.

“If you are a loyal member of the ANC, you would raise some of your concerns internally in the organisation. You can’t behave like a runaway fire. 

“The actions of Dr Khoza are to weaken the ANC and to put the image of the ANC into disrepute,” Kodwa said.

He said people like Khoza were expected to advance the ANC’s agenda of social change, adding that her elevation to Parliament meant that the ANC had trusted her with the responsibility of being the “most developed to understand the disciplinary code of the ANC”.

“We know that some of the ANC members were being courted to cross to the opposition. They are pushing the ANC to the limit to force the party to act. We are not going to act recklessly.

“If we act, the party was going to appear to be intolerant to different views. It is shameless to share public platforms with the critics of the ANC,” Kodwa said.

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