Johannesburg - Scores of ANC delegates are still arriving at the registration centre to register and gain access to attend the 55th National Elective Conference in Nasrec today.
Tony Yengeni, an NEC hopeful, just arrived at the registration centre. He looked calm and relaxed.
These delegates are at the Unisa campus in Ormonde, south of Johannesburg, so being here has left empty seats at the main venue, and it might take longer for the conference to start.
Some delegates were told that their faces did not match their names on the system, which meant that they had to re-register.
Earlier today, outgoing ANC Chairperson Gwede Mantashe said the conference would be delayed due to a large number of delegates who were still registering.
Mantashe announced that the conference would start at 2pm, yet it is past 3pm, and registration is still ongoing.
Scenes of agitated delegates who were stuck in registration queues were witnessed, while some resorted to pushing their way inside.
A female (name withheld) delegate from Limpopo said she was not happy about the pace and manner in which officials at the registration were operating. She complained about the process being very slow.
She said officials first check if your name appears on the system. If not, they retake the pictures, verify using your ID number, and your name has to appear before you can be fully registered.
"By the looks of things, I don’t think we will be done by 4pm or 5pm. There is a very long queue. I guess we have to wait and be patient until our tags are ready. This process is very slow," she said.
Another delegate from KwaZulu-Natal said he remained patient after his photo did not match his name. He, too, had to retake a picture. He said the secretary of his region would update him once his accreditation had been completed.
The majority of delegates who are waiting for their accreditation are mostly from KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the North West, and the Free State.
The delay forced ordinary South Africans to take to social media and share their ideas about the ruling party and their organising debacle.
"ANC cannot even organise registration for a conference of less than 4000 delegates yet want to run a country for 60 million people," wrote Gavin Prelper on Twitter.
The Star