Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina’s statement on Twitter has suggested that the ANC is broke, and struggling to pay staff salaries at its Luthuli House headquarters.
Masina’s sentiments came while he was raising concerns over the ANC’s presidential campaigns conducted in 2017, and how people involved were able to raise over R1 billion for one man, instead of doing so for the party.
At the time, Ramaphosa was vying for the party’s top post alongside Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma.
Masina alleged the money raised was used to overthrow the ANC in the name of the new dawn, a reference to Ramaphosa’s theme as president.
“This Bejani Chauke went and laterally (sic) established a pseudo organisation, raised over R1bn to overthrow the established ANC in the name of the new dawn. You think the difference of R100m miscalculation makes any difference. As we speak at HQ, people not paid while this occurs (sic),” Masina tweeted in what is thought to have been a response to journalist Ferial Haffajee.
The exchange was sparked by revelations from a recent report by Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane on the donations Ramaphosa’s CR17 campaign is said to have received from various donors. Mkhwebane said how the donations were processed had raised suspicions of money laundering.
Masina accused Chauke, Ramaphosa’s campaign manager at the time, of creating a parallel structure while the ANC was struggling to pay salaries.
“All monies raise for ANC activities must be paid at HQ, so that we do organisational work (sic),” Masina later said, and went silent on the issue of non-payment of ANC staff at the party’s headquarters.
But ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe denied the claims on Twitter.