Bejani Chauke and Mdumiseni Ntuli have emerged as the biggest surprises out of the ANC’s nomination processes ahead of the party's national conference next month.
The duo have made it to the ANC’s national conference ballot for the positions of treasurer-general and secretary-general respectively, despite not receiving endorsements from a single province.
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The party’s electoral committee led by Kgalema Motlanthe on Tuesday announced the branch nominations for the top six.
Chauke, among President Cyril Ramaphosa’s special advisers, has come out as the favourite, clinching most of the branch nominations for the position of treasurer-general and edging ahead of ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe and former Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina.
Despite being snubbed by his home province of KZN, former provincial secretary Ntuli has edged ahead in the battle for the secretariat of the ANC, receiving more than 1,225 branch nominations, most from Mpumalanga and Limpopo.
Chauke ran a quiet but effective campaign that has got him 552 branch nominations for the party’s financial head — over Mabe’s 428 and Mzwandile Masina’s 348.
Chauke's campaign was laughed off by those who did not believe it would take off. Most of his branch nominations came from Limpopo and North West, where he received 162 and 93 respectively, according to official numbers released by Motlanthe’s committee.
He also made inroads in Gauteng and KZN, though his opponents edged ahead. He received 91 votes in Gauteng, while Pule and Masina got 121 and 116 respectively. In KZN at least 81 branches chose him, and 173 nominated Masina. Mabe received votes from 73 branches.
Ntuli, who enjoys Ramaphosa's support, on the other hand has caused an upset by having one over his opponents. Unlike him, they were pronounced by provincial structures ahead of the nominations process.
He has received the most branch nominations in five of the nine provinces, while opponents Fikile Mbalula and Phumulo Masualle enjoyed the majority in three provinces and one respectively.
Ntuli received 236 nominations from Mpumalanga, 204 in Limpopo, 180 in Eastern Cape, 143 in Gauteng and 127 in Western Cape.
He also garnered the support of 241 branches from his home province of KZN despite losing his second-term bid as provincial secretary this year. He came second to Phumulo Masualle’s 412 votes, who was endorsed by KZN over him.
Ntuli previously told TimesLIVE there were talks taking place between him and the KZN leadership to avoid not having a single KZN candidate in the top six.
“I think there is a growing recognition among us in leadership that we can’t repeat the mistakes of 2017, and we’re accepting the fact that we have never been and are not personal to one another,” Ntuli said.
He said he was confident he would get endorsement from the majority of provinces.
According to Ntuli, though KZN did not endorse his candidacy, there was consensus that, come conference, most of the delegates from the province will vote for him.
“So in case I get an endorsement, which I know I will, from most of the provinces it’s almost inevitable that my leadership, my colleagues in the PEC and our delegates will equally rally behind my name,” Ntuli said this week.
“Of course there’s a position taken by the province which may not just be a change overnight, but I think on our way to the PGC and the national conference I can guarantee you the majority in that PEC, if not all of them, and the majority of our delegates as well, will support my name for the position of secretary-general.”
