THE disciplinary committee of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal has recommended the ruling party fire a district municipality speaker who in August last year defied an instruction to vacate his high-paying and powerful political position.
The final decision, however, on whether Solomon Msane, the speaker of Umkhanyakude district municipality, should be fired now, lies with the party’s provincial working committee (PWC), which was to meet yesterday.
Msane’s troubles started when service delivery challenges (water provision) in the impoverished district municipality in northern KZN were attributed to factional fights within the political leadership.
The ANC decided to recall Msane. He was not the only politician to be recalled at that time as the party also recalled the mayor of Pongola, Winnie Nhlabathi, who was accused of assault; the speaker of uMngeni local municipality, Zine Dlamini; and the deputy mayor of eMadlangeni (Utrecht) municipality, Ntsikelelo Ndlovu.
They abided by the party’s decision but Msane dug in and refused to surrender his powerful position.
After a hearing, a letter signed by ANC provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli was sent to Msane informing him he had been fired for his defiance.
“The provincial disciplinary committee, acting on behalf of the provincial executive committee, held a number of hearings to evaluate evidence and presentation in relation to your conduct and attitude towards the decision of the ANC provincial executive committee to recall you as the speaker of Umkhanyakude district municipality.
“The provincial disciplinary committee is satisfied that its work in relation to your matter was consistent with the constitution of the ANC, the supreme law of the organisation. Accordingly, the committee has come to a conclusion that you are found guilty of contravening the following provisions of the ANC constitution… and therefore you are expelled from the African National Congress.
You are expelled… and your membership is terminated together with the privileges and rights associated with it,” reads the letter.
ANC spokesperson Nhlakanipho Ntombela confirmed the matter would be discussed by the PWC because the disciplinary committee is a sub-structure which does not take final decisions.
“We will get a report on that matter when the PWC meets today (yesterday) and discuss it. For now we don’t have the full report,” Ntombela said.
Msane said the decision to expel him was not fair and he was taking the fight to Luthuli House (ANC’s headquarters) where he would lodge an appeal to set aside the decision.
“Right now we are at the doorsteps of Luthuli House (to lodge an appeal). We are exhausting all internal processes and they (ANC KZN) will also get a copy of our papers,” he said.