North West premier Supra Mahumapelo may be removed from his position on Tuesday - that is, if his detractors within his own party have their way.
Senior ANC leaders in the province told the Sunday Times they would take advantage of an EFF-sponsored vote of no confidence in Mahumapelo and vote with the opposition, despite a directive from the ANC's national executive committee not to side with an opposition party.
The revolt against Mahumapelo is mostly led by members of the provincial legislature who were axed by the premier from his executive.
One of them is SACP provincial secretary and MPL Madoda Sambatha, who said he believed the ANC had no choice but to recall its premier.
"One of my dissatisfactions is the fact that corruption is not dealt with as corruption. It is dealt with selectively to how the premier related to the people involved," he said.
Sambatha said he raised several concerns before and will continue to raise them.
"The ANC must recall its premier and the national government must put the North West government under administration under section 100 ... the situation is close to when the Limpopo government was put under administration," he said.
Sambatha, who was fired by Mahumapelo last year, said he would call for the premier's head in the caucus meeting on Monday but would not say if he would side with the opposition in the no-confidence vote. But another senior ANC MPL who used to serve in Mahumapelo's executive said he was willing to vote in favour of the motion.
"We don't need a secret ballot for this, even if it's by show of hands we will go for it. We might want to amend it a little bit," said the MPL.
He said the rebels had the support of eight members in the caucus who were willing to vote for the motion.
"I am just giving you the figure of the diehards only, not other possible people who could come ... [we have people] even on the side of the executive," said the MPL.
The ANC has dispatched its NEC deployee, Deputy Minister of Co-operative Governance Obed Bapela, to the province.