Durban - ANC Treasurer-General Zweli Mkhize has indicated that he intends to contest one of the top positions at the party’s elective conference in December. Supporters are backing him, claiming he has the ability to unify the party ahead of the 2019 elections.
“I will accept nominations and be guided by the views of the branches. I intend to be part of the leadership of the ANC from that conference.”
He said it has come to his attention that several branches are considering adding his name to the list of presidential hopefuls, something he said he will respect.
“In terms of an ANC programme for conference, the nominators by branches are about to open. I will be humbled if branches nominate me,” Mkhize added.
On Sunday, some branches in Pongola, northern KwaZulu-Natal, introduced a “third way” into the succession battle in the province.
Ntokozo Hadebe, a branch chairperson who officially added Mkhize’s name to the race, disputed claims that it was just one branch of the region that planned to nominate Mkhize.
“Abaqulusi has 91 branches. We have successfully lobbied 71 to support Comrade Zweli; we are still pursuing the remaining 20.
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“The branches are supreme in the ANC… there is nothing we communicated with the region, we are sending our preferred candidate straight to the national office,” he said.
Hadebe said discussions on who should succeed Zuma began in 2015 within party structures, prompting branches in the region to begin dialogue of who was best suited to lead the ANC.
Hadebe said the ANC was going through trying times and needed a morally upright leader with Mkhize’s qualities to continue serving South Africans. “It took us a year to come up with the name of comrade Zweli. He is exactly what the organisation needs,” he added.
He said the current ANC leadership has been occupied with “numerous serious allegations” against them and focused less on implementing policies and programmes designed to uplift citizens.
“Comrade Zweli is a disciplined member of the ANC with a traceable record of good leadership. He has the experience and ability to unify the party and instil much-needed discipline in the organisation,” Hadebe added.
Referring to the Cyril Ramaphosa and Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma campaigns, Hadebe claimed there was a void of political narrative pushing for organisational unity in two of the “so-called biggest presidential campaigns”.
“They are always talking about radical economic transformation. The ANC can’t focus on that alone when the organisation is in disarray. That is why we need a unifier,” Hadebe said.
Failure to elect leadership that would unify the party could result in the party governing through coalitions after the 2019 general elections.
“There might not be an ANC if we fail to elect leadership that will unify the party; that is why we want Comrade Zweli to be ANC president.”