The ANC’s two biggest provinces are lobbying for the scrapping of the step-aside rule which prohibits criminally charged party members from contesting leadership positions and requires them to vacate any party or government roles.
KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo head to the ANC national policy conference this weekend having adopted resolutions from their provincial conferences and general councils that the rule should be abolished.
Mpumalanga is expected to adopt the same position at the conclusion of its provincial general council.
The three provinces boast the biggest electoral support and party membership in the ANC.
So far those who have had to vacate their positions owing to the rule include the party’s secretary-general Ace Magashule, a staunch ally of former president Jacob Zuma, who is facing corruption charges relating to the asbestos eradication tender in the Free State.
Limpopo strongman Danny Msiza, KwaZulu-Natal’s Zandile Gumede and Mike Mabuyakhulu are also prominent ANC figures whose political activities have been halted because of the rule.
“The special provincial general council was very clear on the issue of the step-aside rule, that as Limpopo we want to lobby other provinces so that the policy conference can recommend to the national conference to scrap the step-aside rule and that is our position,” Limpopo provincial secretary Reuben Madadzhe said this week.
He said this just days after the provincial conference in KZN adopted the same stance.
The conference resolved that delegates to the national policy conference must forward a complete proposal that the step-aside rule must not only be reviewed but must be scrapped
— KZN ANC provincial secretary-general Bheki Mtolo
“The conference resolved that delegates to the national policy conference must forward a complete proposal that the step-aside rule must not only be reviewed but must be scrapped,” said newly elected ANC provincial secretary-general Bheki Mtolo.
Mtolo said delegates were concerned about the application of the rule.
“The conference notes the implementation of the step-aside rule has had serious repercussions for the unity of the ANC at all levels,” Mtolo said.
“The 2022 ANC KwaZulu-Natal policy conference discussion documents acknowledge the step-aside rule has serious contestation, believing the inconsistent application of the rule deviates from its original intentions and results in unintended consequences of rejection.
“We resolved that the province will not only sponsor a review of the step-aside rule at the national policy conference but its total abolishment. The application of such a rule should not create confusion or disunity in the ANC.”
This is a big blow to ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa’s renewal project, which sought to cleanse the party of the corruption and patronage stain it has become known for.
The leadership in these provinces believe the rule has not been applied fairly and that it is being applied to deal with Ramaphosa’s political opponents. They are also against its continuous tweaking by the national executive committee (NEC).
So far, the NEC, the highest decision making body between national conferences, has tweaked the rule twice.
When developing the step-aside guidelines in 2020, the NEC altered the original resolution from the 2017 Nasrec conference which said those facing allegations and charges must vacate their positions.
The NEC tweaked it to say only those who are facing charges should step aside, as the structure believed allegations can be thrown at anyone at any time, some of which can be baseless to deal with a political opponent.
The NEC amended the rule again earlier this year, prohibiting those facing legal challenges from contesting. This was after the conferences of Mpumalanga and eThekwini had elected some leaders who were affected by the rule.
The NEC believed it did not make sense to elect leaders only for them to immediately vacate their positions owing to their cases.
KZN, Limpopo and Mpumalanga are some of the provinces most affected by the rule, which has seen their preferred leaders either unable to contest or have to leave positions after being elected.
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