Durban - The ANC Women’s League in eThekwini Region is fully behind a group of party members who are taking the ANC to court demanding the reinstatement of mayor Zandile Gumede, said regional secretary Zama Sokhabase.
But Sokhabase said the league was not part of the court action.
The group had announced this week that it had consulted lawyers to draft court papers in which the ANC provincial and national executive committees would be respondents.
“If I can wake up one day and see grannies dancing in front of that office (ANC provincial office in Durban) saying they want mama Zandile back, I will be supporting those people, and yes we support them,” said Sokhabase.
Since Gumede was placed on 30-day leave early last month, which was later extended by another 30 days, the league had been participating in protest marches to demand her reinstatement.
She said the league would use its Women’s Month meeting on Thursday to discuss further steps to pursue the PEC to reinstate Gumede, who was suspended following charges of fraud and corruption against her, along with senior municipal officials and businessmen with regard to the city’s solid waste tender.
Sokhabase said she hoped that the NEC had discussed Gumede’s suspension during its meeting in Pretoria this weekend.
The group’s spokesperson, Mzomuhle Dube, said lawyers on Friday met to draft a letter to inform both the PEC and NEC about the intention to go to court.
“We are sending a letter to the NEC and PEC to say we are going to litigate because we have exhausted all possibilities of engagement, and we are now approaching the court to intervene in the matter,” said Dube.
“The letter was sent yesterday (Friday) evening. The deadline is Monday and if by Tuesday there is nothing done there will be a court process,” said Dube.
ANC provincial spokesperson Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu and her national counterpart Pule Mabe were not available to confirm if the PEC had received the lawyers’ letter.
On Friday, Simelane-Zulu said the group was free to go the legal route because “we live in a constitutional country”. She said Gumede’s matter would be finalised by the PEC at the beginning of next month.