Is Zweli Mkhize ANC's 'Plan B' if Dlamini-Zuma’s campaign collapses?

ANC KwaZulu-Natal chairman Sihle Zikalala has denied that his province has lined up treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize as a “Plan B” candidate in case Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma’s campaign to be president collapses.

Zikalala revealed that although he had been approached by Mkhize supporters to endorse his candidacy, his province remained behind Dlamini-Zuma.

However, he admitted that he may not bring a delegation that is 100% behind her to the elective conference in December because there were those who supported Cyril Ramaphosa or Mkhize.

“We support Comrade Nkosazana. I think she is going to emerge,” he told the Sunday Times during an interview on Friday.

Zikalala said there were talks to find a solution to the political impasse in KwaZulu-Natal after the High Court in Pietermaritzburg ruled that the provincial conference that elected his executive had no legal standing.

“We have said that we don’t have a problem with convening a conference [to elect new leaders], but the problem is we’re in the middle of a term and there is no reason for convening a conference,” he said.

• Read the full story on the Sunday Times website