KwaZulu-Natal ANC chairperson Sihle Zikalala slammed the prevalence of factionalism in the party and called for the rejection of anything that sought to divide the party.
Zikalala was delivering the opening address of the 8th eThekwini ANC Regional Conference, held in the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban, where he told the gathered delegates that they had to reject the idea that the party could be divided along the lines of their preferred candidates at any conference or level of the ANC.
The conference sees disgraced former eThekwini municipality mayor Zandile Gumede vying for the position of chairperson against incumbent eThekwini municipality Speaker Thabani Nyawose, with the results expected early on Sunday morning.
In Gumede’s slate was Thembo Ntuli contesting for deputy chairperson, Musa Nciki for secretary, Nkosenhle Madlala as deputy secretary and Zoe Shabalala as treasurer.
Those in Nyawose’s slate were Mthunzi Dlamini running for deputy chairperson, Bheki Ntuli for secretary with Thanduxolo Sabelo as deputy secretary and Ntokozo Sibiya as treasurer.
“We must reject characterisation that seeks to apportion members of the ANC to factions, whether it’s the neo-liberal agenda or whether it’s RET, anything that seeks to factionalise the ANC members must be rejected,” Zikalala said.
The conference was scheduled to begin at 9am today, but was delayed by the registration and voting status of nine ANC Youth League delegates said to be pro Nyawose, while the faction aligned to Gumede only arrived at the auditorium just before 2pm.
Zikalala reminded delegates and members of the party that they had taken an oath to defend the unity and integrity of the ANC and combat any tendencies towards disruptions and factionalism.
“If you were conscious of this oath I am sure many of us would have been here by 10am, yet there was no one, because factionalism has prevailed, it is the order of the day and that’s where many people belong.
“If we are mindful of the oath that we took, we would have come here not as groupings, but as individual delegates that come from branches.
“I’m sure that some of you no longer know the route from a branch straight to a meeting of the ANC without passing by a faction.
“You need to arrive with others, it is so because we have allowed ourselves to become members of members.
“We are more loyal to factions than the ANC as an organisation.
“We must confront these tendencies, this ill discipline that prevails within the ANC,” Zikalala said.
He said the confrontation, deliberation and dealing with factional tendencies should be exercised even if these tendencies were done by leaders.
“It’s wrong for members of the organisation to hold the organisation to ransom because they are a grouping of a faction.
“Let us belong to the ANC and not factions, let us surrender our skills and energies to the ANC not factions.
“Comrades, we need to build unity.
“We need to stand up against the wedge drivers and those who work day and night to divide and factionalise our movement.
“Our allegiance must be only with the ANC, its policies and programmes. We must also remember that we are ANC members and not members of members.
“Individual leaders come, serve and pass the baton, but the ANC will remain long after they have played their role,” Zikalala said.
He called on all national and provincial leaders to support regions and branches and not interfere in any way with conferences of regions because “regions are for regions and branches”.
“We must deal with the tendencies of leaders who, when there are conferences, become available and criss-cross all areas.
“They are available for conferences and not the actual political work of the organisation.
“We must deal with tendencies where comrades in high positions go around having meetings with other structures outside the organisational framework,” Zikalala said.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE