Dlamini-Zuma lashes out at party factionalists

ANC national executive committee member and presidential hopeful Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma had strong words against members of the party who promoted factionalism saying it was destroying the organisation.

Dlamini-Zuma who was delivering a Stephen Dlamini Memorial Lecture in Ixopo‚ in her own region of Harry Gwala on Tuesday afternoon‚ told party supporters at the Peace Initiative Hall that "faction does not help anyone".

"Faction must stop. If there is faction in this region as well it should stop...faction destroys comrades‚ it destroys the ANC‚" said Dlamini-Zuma to rapturous applause‚ whistling and chants of "bua mama" (speak mama).

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"Faction is bad. You must also not allow to be referred to as so and so's person‚" she said.

Dlamini-Zuma who is widely expected to go up against deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa for the coveted ANC presidency in December urged members to also adhere to principles of democracy in the party.

"If [in a conference] you win you should embrace the loser and if you lose you should allow yourself to follow the winner‚" she said.

The former AU Commission chair said if comrades destroy the ANC they will be destroying something of value.

She asked the audience if they thought the DA would do anything for them.

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Dlamini-Zuma also stressed the importance of distributing the economy saying transformation was needed urgently.

As a globetrotter she said she had observed that the unrest in many countries was as a result of economic equality.

She singled out Nigeria saying most of the unrest in the oil-rich west African nation was as a result of the unequal development.

"That is why there are problems in the north because it is not as developed as the south."

She also called for discipline and responsible leadership‚ citing Stephen Dlamini as an excellent example.

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"The likes of comrade Stephen Dlamini led their lives in a way that told us you are not the boss of the people but a servant of the people‚" she said.

Introducing her earlier‚ provincial ANC deputy secretary and local district mayor Mluleki Ndobe said Dlamini-Zuma was a seasoned leader who should not be "reduced to being an ex-spouse of another leader but a leader in her own right".

- TMG Digital/TimesLIVE