Tshwarelo Hunter Mogakane
Pretoria - The provincial leadership of the ANC in Mpumalanga spent last night familiarising themselves with the guidelines on how they should conduct nomination processes for the national leadership of the governing party ahead of the elective conference in December.
Nominations for the top leadership race officially opened yesterday, setting the tone for massive campaigns that will see the top six being elected in the next three months.
Provincial spokesperson Ngelosi Ndlovu would not speak on the pronouncements previously made by ANC chairperson Mandla Ndlovu and his deputy Speedy Mashilo, who both hinted that President Cyril Ramaphosa should avail himself for a second term as national leader of the party.
“Unfortunately, at this moment, I am unable to answer questions as there is no provincial executive committee (PEC) resolution on whom to support for the top six.
“There is still going to be a workshop tonight on the guidelines for nominations.
“We will, however, issue a statement once the PEC has pronounced,” said Ngelosi Ndlovu yesterday.
She declined to comment on Mandla Ndlovu and Mashilo’s previous statements supporting Ramaphosa for a second term.
There have been sentiments that former provincial chairperson, Deputy President David “DD” Mabuza, would not enjoy support in the province due to a fallout with Ndlovu and some regional leaders, who viewed him as a traitor for handing Ramaphosa his presidency at the party’s 54th national conference in Nasrec in 2017.
Mabuza’s “Unity” faction delivered votes that saw Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma losing to Ramaphosa by 179 votes while he secured his deputy presidency.
However, ANC provincial treasurer Mandla Msibi told his supporters, who were gathered outside the Mpumalanga High Court on Monday, that Mabuza should be supported.
Msibi, a fierce political organiser who was elected as provincial treasurer in absentia in April this year, has been unable to speak on political matters since he was forced to step aside after being charged with two murders and one attempted murder.
All the charges against him and five others were provisionally withdrawn, which allowed him to resume his duties as provincial treasurer yesterday.
“Should a pilot lose consciousness mid-flight, the plane is going to crash. That is why, in my view, we dropped in Mpumalanga province. Let’s go back to the branches of the ANC.
“We are going to (the) national conference. (We are the ones) who must correct the mess – not anyone else. No one will tell us of newcomers. The generational mix being spoken about should include Fikile Mbalula at national,” said Msibi.
Msibi said he supported Mabuza’s family during a bereavement in Phola near Hazyview when the deputy president lost his aunt in June this year.
During the funeral, Msibi and the then North West premier Supra Mahumapelo were among the honoured guests.
“During the 2017 (conference), others supported Ramaphosa while others supported Dlamini Zuma. I supported Dlamini Zuma, and we lost.
“I had to accept the decision of the national congress. From there, we were clear as Mpumalanga that we are supporting Mabuza. Now, if we are to change anything, we must first call Mabuza and say, ‘you have failed us on the following issues.’
“Anything opposing that is a fallacy, and we are not going to agree with it,” said Msibi, to wide applause.
Msibi has declined to clarify if he would persuade the PEC to support Mabuza.
There seems to be a rift among members of the PEC.
On Monday, Msibi told his supporters that he had been betrayed by “comrades running the province.”
Msibi said he would reveal the truth after speaking to the national officials, adding that he only trusted provincial deputy secretary Lindiwe Ntshalintshali. Ntshalintshali has declined to comment.
Meanwhile, a Mbombela-based businessman working closely with the ANC PEC in Mpumalanga said it was difficult to read what would happen in the next few weeks.
“There have been comrades who tried to fight our business affairs because they believe we are aligned to Mabuza.
“So, it is not easy for the PEC to gain instant consensus on which candidate the province should nominate.
“Remember, the branches are not a choir singing from the same hymn book.
“There are regional structures and branches that will all have to be whipped into shape until there’s no doubt as to who should lead the party at national level,” said the businessman.
Pretoria News