Cape Town - Marius Fransman, the former ANC Western Cape leader under investigation for sexual harassment allegations, is confident he’ll be back in office to steer the party in the lead-up to the August 3 local elections.
The ANC’s integrity committee was due to decide this weekend whether Fransman should take back the provincial leadership from acting chairman Khaya Magaxa.
Zizi Kodwa, the party’s national spokesman, did not respond to queries by publication time on Saturday night, but Fransman said he expected the case against him to be dropped.
Fransman told Weekend Argus he was confident the ANC’s national leadership would support his return. “I have full confidence in the national executive to correct this travesty of justice.
“I hope this saga can soon be over so that I can assess, as the elected provincial leader, the damages caused by this faction in the province.”
A police investigation into the harassment charges is also under way.
The ANC’s provincial executive was last night still finalising its municipal election list for the poll.
On Friday night, its offices in Cape Town were vandalised.
Despite several attempts to contact the ANC’s provincial leaders and spokesman for comment on this, there was no response.
Fransman’s reference to factionalism relates to his earlier allegations that the ANC’s regional secretary in the Boland, Jonton Snyman, had orchestrated the sexual harassment allegations against him.
Weekend Argus contacted Snyman for comment, but he did not reply by publication time.
Weekend Argus has copies of affidavits handed to the ANC’s national disciplinary committee overseeing the sexual harassment probe.
The affidavits from ANC branch leaders in Paarl claim Snyman confirmed he framed Fransman.
Sandile Booysen and Thobile Mtyole, chairman and deputy chairman of the Titana branch in Paarl respectively, claimed in affidavits Snyman “orchestrated” the allegations.
“Jonton has never missed an opportunity to express his severe dislike and hatred of Marius Fransman,” said Booysen.
“At one point he started referring to the sexual harassment complaint that was made against Fransman after the (ANC 104th) national celebration in Rustenberg.
“He disclosed to us that he planned and orchestrated the complaint against Fransman. He indicated that he knows the lady (who laid the complaint) and arranged that she must lay a false complaint (with the police) against Fransman.
“He was emphatic that Fransman would be expelled from the ANC and that he would be reinstated as a member as he is connected to some high ranking officials.”
Booysen said he wanted to “come clean” about his involvement with Snyman, who he alleges paid ANC members to vote for him.
“I believe that I have committed a grave mistake and wish to come clean in the best interest of our glorious movement, the ANC,” said Booysen.
In October, Snyman was expelled from the provincial ANC after he had been “convicted in a court of law for the offence of fraud, theft of money, corruption, money-laundering, racketeering or any other act of financial impropriety”.
The national ANC office reinstated him.
Fransman said the provincial ANC was still battling with factionalism. “What is very clear to us is there is a deep rot that is being uncovered in the ANC.
“It’s the lowest form of politics that you can find. I have served the ANC over two decades in senior positions and we had many differences.
“But this is an all-time low that certain people in the ANC have gone to the point of manufacturing affidavits to bring me down.
“It’s all about putting their pals in positions in council. It’s not about serving the community. I am concerned about the impact on the election. Unless the ANC pulls itself right we will see a decline in the province.”
Weekend Argus