ANC Gauteng wants ‘ethical conduct’

Cape Town 16.01.11 ANC meeting at, Landbou Saal in Piketberg picture : neil baynes

Cape Town 16.01.11 ANC meeting at, Landbou Saal in Piketberg picture : neil baynes

Published Oct 5, 2014

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Pretoria - An elective conference of the ANC in Gauteng on Sunday resolved to push for the urgent implementation of standards of ethical conduct, provincial secretary Hope Papo said.

“This will include all our members and, in particular, leaders and cadres should actively promote the standing reputation of the ANC in the eyes of our people.”

“The government we lead must also focus on promoting the values of integrity, ethical conduct and intolerance for fraud and corruption,” Papo said, reading the resolutions of the summit.

The provincial structure also resolved to oppose e-tolls in Gauteng.

“The current system is too expensive, traffic flows have been negatively affected by urban tolling.

“We would rather have a fuel levy for this, administered by Sars (SA Revenue Services),” said Papo, to applause from hundreds of delegates.

He said the party provincial structure would seek to make submissions to a review panel established by Gauteng Premier David Makhura to probe the socio-economic impact of the e-tolls.

President Jacob Zuma did not address an ANC Gauteng elective conference in Pretoria as scheduled on Sunday.

A programme of the three-day summit, issued on Friday by the provincial structure, indicated that Zuma would address delegates on Sunday.

In Zuma's place, African National Congress deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte gave a brief speech.

“There is clearly an attempt to delegitimise our movement in the eyes of the people despite the many great things we have done in the past 20 years,” she said.

“Even today, this conference has been reduced to the fact that the president is doing work somewhere else. There is no gap between the Gauteng leadership and the (ANC's) national executive committee.”

Former arts and culture minister Paul Mashatile was re-elected chairman of the province, while premier David Makhura was elected deputy chairman.

Mashatile was booted out of Cabinet when President Zuma announced a reshuffle in May.

He was replaced by Nathi Mthethwa who was moved from the police ministry.

The outspoken former Gauteng premier has maintained a hardline stance on e-tolling in the province.

At the conference on Friday, he told delegates that government agencies like the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) did not run the country.

“It's not that I don't like Sanral, but they must know their place. Government agencies don't run the country, but the ANC does. I don't like government agencies that take on politicians,” Mashatile said to applause and whistling.

“They must go and be elected first. We appoint officials to implement the policies of the ANC. Sanral cannot tell us what to do. We tell them what to do.”

Earlier, party spokesman Zizi Kodwa said Zuma could not speak at the conference because he had another function to attend.

“Other people had pre-arranged programmes which unfortunately could not be changed... He (Zuma) was hoping (to) finish on time today, but the programme is keeping him long.”

He explained that Zuma had to attend an education trust function in KwaZulu-Natal on Sunday, despite being scheduled to deliver closing remarks at the ANC conference at 1pm. - Sapa

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