Durban - Despite maintaining the country was ready for a woman president, the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) was vague on whether the eThekwini region should elect a woman as regional chairperson at its conference.
This emerged as the league’s members in the region are divided over their support of the preferred candidates – eThekwini Metro mayor James Nxumalo, and former regional treasurer Zandile Gumede.
Speaking at a press conference in Durban on Monday, ANCWL president Bathabile Dlamini said they did not want to take up the issue of women’s representation in every party election.
“We are to always raise that in the structures of the ANC. When there are elections, the ANC has been performing well in placing women in decision-making structures, from council to province and nationally,” Dlamini said.
She also said placement of women in decision-making positions was not doing women any favours. “It is because women have proved themselves, and that they have performed very well.”
But Dlamini said there were women who had grown powerful within the ranks of the ANC in the liberation struggle, and were in the frontline in the fight against the enemy.
“ANC members know about them. It is not only (the) ANCWL that will push for them. Even ANC branches are to be part of the process that we’re to go through,” Dlamini said.
She and other ANCWL top five leaders are in Durban as part of the delegation of ANC national leaders visiting the party in KwaZulu-Natal.
The Daily News reported on Monday that the visit was aimed at building unity in the province in an apparent attempt to curb division within party structures.
Commenting on the visit, Dlamini said the ANCWL in eThekwini had not shown any signs of division.
And referring to the eThekwini region conference, she said contests for positions in conferences was normal.
Meanwhile, the ANCWL said it was also committed to the creation of the Young Women’s Desk to ensure that emancipation of women became a reality for all.
Daily News