Zuma and other Top Six leaders slated for failing to unite ANC in KZN

Former KwaZulu-Natal premier Senzo Mchunu has criticised President Jacob Zuma and the other ANC Top Six leaders for failing to intervene decisively in the leadership dispute which is tearing the organisation apart in the province.

He said when the ANC national executive committee came to the province recently in a bid to resolve the dispute emanating from the 2015 provincial conference they had hoped that they would be able to unite them.

“We had hoped that when our national leadership came to KZN they would intervene in such a way that there could be a situation where we would be able to discuss the issues and build unity and stop pointing fingers at one another and corruption within internal processes of the ANC as we are preparing for the conference so that we would be in a better position to deal with the 2019 elections‚” he said.

He said despite the ANC’s top brass spending two days in the province to deal with the leadership dispute‚ no decision has been made on the matter.

“And I don’t think there will ever be a decision. Allowing them to appeal delays the negotiations‚” he said.

Mchunu‚ who was addressing members of the South African Communist Party (SACP) in Inchanga‚ west of Durban‚ on Sunday‚ said because the KwaZulu-Natal ANC provincial executive committee (PEC) have decided to appeal the Pietermaritzburg High Court judgment which annulled the disputed 2015 provincial conference‚ the high court decision must be implemented now.

“Because these comrades have appealed‚ they have forced a situation for that appeal to be opposed. They have also forced a situation where the decision of the court must be implemented now. What is called an order of execution. That judgment must work now. And when the judgment starts working things will become clearer and there can be negotiations on how we go forward‚” said Mchunu.

“But if the national executive committee said ‘comrades what is more important is to build unity and we will see about the courts later‚ if you have a right to appeal do that‚ but you must just leave the office.’ But as I speak there is that poison between us‚ something we don’t need as we’re approaching the conference.”

Mchunu‚ who was ANC KwaZulu-Natal chairman and provincial premier at the time of the 2015 provincial conference‚ was resoundingly beaten by Sihle Zikalala‚ who is now the economic development MEC.

But his supporters challenged the outcome of the conference and took the matter to court which ruled in their favour and nullified the conference‚ effectively rendering the new PEC illegitimate.

However‚ the PEC has decided to appeal the court’s decision and have remained in office.

Mchunu also hinted that he might take the report which contained false allegations about him before he was removed as premier to the police in a bid to clear his name as it tarnished his reputation.

He said there was a crisis in the ANC although some leaders were denying it.

“There is a crisis in the ANC and the way things are bad is a situation that creates fear‚ especially because the ANC is the ruling party. But there are leaders who are denying that there is a crisis in the organisation and that makes the situation even worse.”

He lamented divisions and the manipulation of ANC processes by those who wanted to fulfil their own aims. He said the ANC has been infiltrated by gangsters.

“In the ANC we have too many gangsters who can manipulate the organisation’s processes to fulfil their aims. The failure of our leadership to deal with problems within the organisation diminishes hope.”

Mchunu said it was pointless of the ANC to sing about radical economic transformation when corruption was still rampant in government.

“We must start with the radical removal of corruption in government. Let’s stop singing radical economic transformation when we are facing corruption. How can we talk about radical economic transformation where we’re not talking about economic growth.”