Durban - National Freedom Party leaders’ hopes of meeting their president, Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi, for the first time in almost a year were dashed - the closest they got to seeing her was in photographs in the media.
KaMagwaza-Msibi’s spokesman, Canaan Mdletshe, released the pictures early this week after her meeting with traditional leaders and some senior party members at her official residence in Pretoria.
Party secretary-general Nhlanhla Khubisa told the media on Wednesday the national executive committee (NEC) had asked to see their leader two days before she met the traditional leaders.
“We had said, even if it is a few NEC individuals to visit her. Her husband, Mandla Msibi, said he would tell us this week when the meeting would take place,” said Khubisa.
Traditional leaders had accompanied national working committee members to the private meeting. That committee last saw KaMagwaza-Msibi before she fell sick at her home in Newcastle late last year.
Party national chairman Maliyakhe Shelembe was not happy that traditional leaders had had access to kaMagwaza-Msibi before the national executive committee, but he would not do anything about it since it had been a private meeting.
“We cannot accept that members of the national working committee visited the president without informing the NEC,” he said.
Numerous requests to meet the leader had been fruitless.
“Maybe the route that we are using is not same that traditional leaders used. Our route is via Mr Msibi. We don’t know the route that took traditional leaders to the president,” he said.
The national executive committee members also objected to Mdletshe’s speaking for KaMagwaza-Msibi in her capacity as the party leader instead of speaking for her as the deputy minister of science and technology.
They accused him of overstepping his duties, since Khubisa was the party spokesman.
He said displaying the pictures, which Mdletshe had taken during KaMagwaza-Msibi’s meeting with traditional leaders, was unbecoming.
“The privacy of our president had been invaded. When our president was taken ill, her family requested we respect her privacy which we have done.”
Mdletshe said he was allowed to speak for KaMagwaza-Msibi on party issues because he had not been appointed by the department.
“I will only stop what I am doing once the deputy minister tells me to.”
Department of Public Service and Administration spokesman Dumisani Nkwamba said public servants should remain non-partisan. But he said he could not comment specifically on Mdletshe’s case.
The Mercury