ANC NEC rejects calls for Ekurhuleni conference rerun

24 June 2022 - 12:21
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Mzwandile Masina clinched a third term as regional chair at the party's recent Ekurhuleni regional conference. File photo.
Mzwandile Masina clinched a third term as regional chair at the party's recent Ekurhuleni regional conference. File photo.
Image: Gallo Images/Sharon Seretlo

A special meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC), the party’s highest decision-making body in between national congresses, has rejected calls for a rerun of the Ekurhuleni conference that took place last month.

The ANC Ekurhuleni regional conference, which re-elected Mzwandile Masina as chair, has been marred by allegations of irregularities that saw 19 votes from five branches being quarantined.

Masina won by 163 votes against rival Doctor Xhakaza’s 151 votes. The results were said to be provisional, pending a decision on the quarantined votes.

The special NEC meeting that went on until 4am on Friday debated at length a report by Jeff Radebe into allegations of irregularities in the lead-up to the conference. Radebe’s report is said to have uncovered there were 27 disputed branches instead of the quarantined five.

It was, however, decided that the focus should be on the five branches and not the “rumoured” 27 and that the Gauteng provincial executive committee (PEC) must decide the fate of the five branches.

The meeting also decided the matter should have no impact on the Gauteng ANC provincial conference and it should go ahead as scheduled for this weekend, from Friday to Sunday. The Gauteng PEC is in a meeting discussing the outcomes of the NEC.

“We decided it belongs to the PEC, not the NEC. The PEC must decide what happens to those five branches,” said a NEC member who attended the meeting.

“The Jeff (Radebe) report said those five branches must be disqualified because that is what we were focused on. These others ones are a rumour which we will deal with as and when they come. We don’t know which processes were flouted or who complained.”

TimesLIVE understands Senzo Mchunu and Derek Hanekom put up a fight in the meeting, demanding the Ekurhuleni conference be rerun.

They are said to have argued it would be wrong for the NEC to ignore allegations that there are additional branches being disputed. However, they were defeated on the basis the allegations are presently merely rumours.

“They lost the debate. They could not sustain it because it could not make sense,” said an insider.

“In this NEC meeting we won by being organisational. The PEC must decide the fate of those branches. They must decide by using the tools provided. The tools include the organisation saying those branches must be disqualified. All the other allegations will be dealt with as and when they come.”

ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile, ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa and national chair Gwede Mantashe are said to have told the meeting that if there was any credence to the allegations that there were 27 disputed branches, Mashatile’s office would deal with them in due course.

“When Paul [Mashatile] summarised, he made it very simple: conference of Gauteng proceeds, the five quarantined branches must be decided by the PEC. If there is any allegation or any issue regarding other branches, the secretary-general’s office and organising will look into the matter.

“The president summarised exactly the same thing, Mantashe summarised the same thing and the meeting was over.”

TimesLIVE

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