Johannesburg - Tshwane mayoral candidate Thoko Didiza was an experienced senior politician with vast experience in governance, African National Congress deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte said on Monday.
“Her nomination for mayoral candidacy demonstrates our commitment to strengthening the capacity of leadership at local government level across the board. We are confident that once elected by the people of Tshwane, she will continue to build on the solid foundation laid by comrade Kgosientso Ramokgopa and his collective over the last five years,” Duarte told reporters in Johannesburg.
Didiza, an ANC NEC member, was confirmed as the mayoral candidate by the ruling party, despite clashes between factions at a regional committee meeting on Sunday in Tshwane, where an ANC member was shot dead and several others injured.
Duarte said Didiza was a Tshwane resident and had held leadership positions in the region.
The ANC in Tshwane is reportedly divided between Ramokgopa and his regional deputy chairperson Mapiti Matsena. Matsena is believed to have topped the list for the mayoral candidacy.
At a post-national executive committee meeting on Saturday, ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe said the Tshwane region had initially put three names forward for the mayoral candidacy, but said the third name was removed.
Duarte said Ramokgopa was not on the list from the regional committee. Didiza was a compromise candidate after regional and provincial structures could not agree on the names forwarded, she added.
“We all respect the decision of the PEC (Provincial Executive Committee). In the three names presented, two of which were by the REC to the PEC, comrade Ramokgopa was not amongst them… so we must keep in mind and understand that we are deploying these comrades to work and ensure that the ANC is solid and united.”
She said Ramokgopa and Matsena would remain in their regional positions “and focus on building the ANC structures”.
Tshwane is set to be one of the fiercely contested metros for the August 3 local government polls.
The Economic Freedom Fighters and the Democratic Alliance have been making inroads into the ANC’s support base in Tshwane, hoping to build enough support to unseat the governing party.
African News Agency