E Cape ANC slam party protests

THE ANC Eastern Cape provincial executive committee (PEC) has expressed shock at the behaviour of a group of people who “claimed to be ANC members” at its Nelson Mandela Bay regional office – Florence Matomela House in Port Elizabeth – on Saturday.

“We are aware that the protests were well orchestrated to disrupt the appeal process of branches on the outcomes of the branch general meetings in the metro,” ANC Eastern Cape secretary Oscar Mabuyane said yesterday.

It emerged that Deputy Rural Development and Land Reform Minister Mcebisi Skwatsha was briefly held hostage by a group of protesters at the ANC regional headquarters at Florence Matomela House on Saturday morning.

“What shocked us most was the presence of one ward councillor and PR councillor among the protesters, whose branches were not supposed to be part of the appeals on the day as they were already dealt with on Friday by the NEC (national executive committee) team as led by comrade Mcebisi Skwatsha,” Mabuyane said.

In the “harshest possible terms”, the ANC PEC condemned such behaviour and called for a halt to such “atrocious displays of dissatisfaction, whatever the cause”.

“It makes a mockery of the right to protest and diminishes the stature of grievance and the genuine issues that may be raised,” Mabuyane said.

This emerging practice among certain ANC members across the country to resort to violent protests, disruption of ANC meetings, forceful occupation, and burning down of ANC offices and symbols to challenge organisational decisions and processes was “destroying the organisation of OR Tambo”, he said. – ANA