As talk about the Inkatha Freedom Party's (IFP) succession begins to take centre stage, its Gauteng provincial leadership wants to have a more dominant role in its top structure when the party heads to its elective conference.
Speculation about the IFP's leadership race has been building after its president and Cogta minister Velenkosini Hlabisa spoke out against his detractors earlier this month.
The IFP leader uncharacteristically went for the jugular when he told party members he was the target of a character assassination, fuelling speculation that the party's leadership race was beginning to heat up.
Hlabisa, who was anointed by IFP founder and former president Mangosuthu Buthelezi to succeed him, is expected to seek re-election. He has previously been touted to go up against KwaZulu-Natal chairperson andpremier Thami Ntuli.
These two leaders have in the past battled for control of the party's structures in the province. However, Ntuli shocked many of his loyal supporters last year when he announced that he would not contest the position. This opened up space for party leaders who had previously taken a back seat to launch their own campaigns.
The race to elect new leaders will have consequences for the government of national unity, and those who are elected stand to gain national profiles and possibly lead ministries in government.
“We also want to be part of the decision-making in the IFP. [The] IFP is a national party, not a regional party, so it has to be inclusive. Other provinces have to be accommodated going forward
— Gauteng provincial secretary Alco Ngobese
Gauteng province is hoping to have its own piece of the pie. In an interview with TimesLIVE Premium, provincial secretary Alco Ngobese suggested that the party should review its leadership structure ahead of its internal elections.
According to Ngobese, Gauteng cannot be left out of the top brass. He argues that for the IFP to shake off its reputation as a regional party, its leadership must reflect other provinces, especially those who are already in government.
“We also want to be part of the decision-making in the IFP. [The] IFP is a national party, not a regional party, so it has to be inclusive. Other provinces have to be accommodated going forward,” Ngobese said.
“If you look at the top seven currently, it only consists of members that come from KZN. It's something that we need to improve going forward. We once had an SG [secretary-general] who came from Gauteng, Sibongile Nkomo. We want it to go that way. We will engage internally. I don't think there is resistance. All the party leaders think the same,” Ngobese said.
Nkomo was elected in 2012 and was later deployed to the National Assembly. She died in 2019. Since then, the party's top structures have come from KwaZulu-Natal.
It's unclear when the IFP will hold its elective conference. However,, there are expectations that the party will elect new leaders before the 2026 local government elections.
The IFP is part of the Gauteng minority government, with its provincial chairperson Bonginkosi Dhlamini holding the eGovernment portfolio. The party is also part of Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero's coalition.
Dhlamini and Ngobese will be the front-runners for any top positions at the national level.
Ngobese said the party was busy with its revitalisation programme to rebuild structures ahead of its internal elections and the local government polls. Asked if the province had endorsed any leader to succeed Hlabisa, he said the province had not yet discussed succession.
“We have not yet engaged on that as yet, but we are going to have a provincial council to look into what outcome we want from the internal conference, both in policy and constitutional amendment. There are things that we feel need to be changed policy-wise. Some of our policies might be outdated; they need to be re-engaged compared to the political environment and dynamics that are happening right now. Once we are done with renewing our structures, that is the next stage,” he said.
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