Johannesburg - Former Umkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association spokesperson Carl Niehaus has called on the ANC Electoral Committee to immediately remove the Elexions Agency as adjudicator of the 55th elective conference since its head, Dren Nupen, was “conflicted”.
Niehaus, who is appealing his dismissal from the ANC, told Independent Media on Saturday the Nupen family had been close friends of President Cyril Ramaphosa since the time of the democratic dispensation talks of the early 90s under the banner of the Congress of a Democratic South Africa (Codesa).
He said Dren’s husband, Charles Nupen, was the president’s legal adviser which clearly constituted a conflict of interest. Apart from that, Niehaus said he had information that Dren had been going around saying she would want to see ramaphosa win a second term as president.
The Nupens and Ramaphosas erre old-time friends, Niehaus said. They even went on holidays together, and he wanted to know how could members of the family could run an elective conference objectively.
“I know that Charles Nupen has been Ramaphosa’s legal adviser from the days of the Codesa talks, now his wife runs an elective conference where her husband’s friend is a contender,” Niehaus said.
The Electoral Committee denied any conflict of interest, saying it was aware of this “false” allegation which it dismissed with the contempt it deserves.
The committee’s secretary, Chief Matsila, denied that Charles Nupen was the president’s legal adviser.
“The fact is that Peter Harris is the lawyer of the ANC president, Comrade Cyril Ramphosa, and Charles Nupen is not. Dren Nupen has every right to do business on her own and independently so from her husband. Elexions is an independent business entity whose existence is distinct from the law firm that Charles Nupen is part of,” said Matsila.
Furthermore, he said the agency had conducted ANC elections over the past 25 years with integrity and there was no basis whatsoever to doubt their credibility this time around. Spurious allegations raised by expelled ANC members had no bearing or consequence on the work of the ANC Electoral Committee.
Attempts to get comment from the Nupens and Ramaphosa by the time of publication had been unsuccessful.
Daily News