Faced with the prospect of losing the Western Cape to a DA-led coalition in next year's general election, ANC president Jacob Zuma cracked the whip on his party's divided provincial leadership and ordered them to stop bickering.
Zuma warned the two camps - led on the one hand by provincial chairperson James Ngculu and Premier Ebrahim Rasool, and by provincial secretary Mcebisi Skwatsha on the other - that their political infighting could cost the ANC control of the Western Cape.
Addressing more than 1 000 people at an ANC rally in Khayelitsha on Sunday, Zuma said it was vital for both camps to openly discuss their differences and forge unity before the election.
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Before the watershed Polokwane conference, the Ngculu and Rasool camp had backed Thabo Mbeki for a third term as party president, while the Skwatsha group wanted Zuma to take over the reins at Luthuli House.
Tension between the camps persist five months after a new leadership under Zuma emerged from Polokwane.
Realising the potential damage the divisions might have in terms of a DA-led coalition wresting the Western Cape from the ANC, Zuma said his party could not afford to lose the province.
If infighting continued, the provincial leadership would open itself up to the opposition, which would take advantage and garner more votes.
Stressing the need for unity Zuma, who spoke in Xhosa, said: "Here in the Western Cape we had (political) infighting and we lost the City of Cape Town. I hope we understand that. We suffered afterwards. We were ruled by people who were not sure whether they were coming or going."
Without mentioning the two camps by name, he said the squabbles must end as a matter of urgency.
"Unity is the most powerful weapon of the ANC. That is why it was established - to unite the people of this country.
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