Cape Town - Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa has refused to throw his hat into the ring in the race to succeed President Jacob Zuma.
Ramaphosa skirted the issue in Parliament on Wednesday when he was urged by the DA to take over from his boss.
But Ramaphosa threw the question back at DA MP David Maynier and said he should oust his leader Mmusi Maimane.
Ramaphosa was in the chamber to answer several questions on the World Economic Forum, the peace process in South Sudan and the public protector report on the ANC distributing food parcels during election time.
The deputy president told MPs that there was no battle for leadership in the ANC. “We in the ANC have no problem. We have a strong leadership that is leading the country, we have a strong leadership that is leading the party,” he told Maynier.
He urged the DA MP to run for leadership in his party and remove Maimane.
The ANC has banned early campaigning until it has made a pronouncement.
Ramaphosa has been touted as one of the leading challengers to replace Zuma in the party.
AU chairwoman Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has also been said to be in the running for the top job.
Speaker Baleka Mbete’s name has also been thrown into the ring.
A few weeks ago her ward in Mqanduli, Eastern Cape, backed her for the top job in the country during a ceremony to name the branch after her.
Zuma has been at the helm of the ANC since he ousted former President Thabo Mbeki in a fiercely contested elective conference in Polokwane, Limpopo, in 2007.
Zuma’s coalition that brought him to power has since clashed, leading to divisions in the alliance.
The ANC has been under pressure in recent times to remove Zuma following allegations of state capture by the Gupta family.
The family has strenuously denied any involvement in state capture or influencing the appointment of Cabinet ministers.
ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe has warned against axing a sitting president. When Mbeki was recalled in 2008 he was no longer the president of the ANC, but of the country.
The national working committee has backed Zuma despite the two damning judgments on Nkandla and the spy tapes.
The National Prosecuting Authority and Zuma have said they will appeal against the decision of the high court in Pretoria on the spy tapes. They believe then acting head of the NPA Mokotedi Mpshe was correct in dropping charges against Zuma a few days before the elections in 2009.