New PEC poll plans in place

ELECTIONS IN THESE PROVINCES WERE ‘RAILROADED’ BY FACTIONS

Free State ANC members aligned to former provincial deputy chairperson Thabo Manyoni welcomed the decision to disband the ANC provincial executive committee (PEC).

At the weekend, the newlyelected ANC national executive committee (NEC) decided to disband both the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal provincial executive committees and replace them with temporary task teams to organise the elections for properly constituted PECs.

The PECs were elected by supporters of former presidential-hopeful Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who sidelined all party branches aligned to then ANC deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa. Since then Ramaphosa has been elected ANC president and his supporters want to contest the next election.

The PECs were declared unlawful in separate court rulings in Pietermaritzburg and Bloemfontein. The KZN committee was elected in 2015 and saw former premier and chairperson Senzo Mchunu defeated by Sihle Zikalala. Last November, the Free State ANC re-elected Ace Magashule as provincial chairperson with Paseka Nompondo as his deputy, replacing Manyoni.

Magashule was subsequently elected as the new ANC secretary-general at the December national conference and therefore would have had to resign as provincial premier and chairperson, had the processes not been nullified by a court. Now Manyoni will contest for the position of chairperson. But unless the spirit of unity seen at Nasrec between Ramaphosa and Dlamini-Zuma followers prevails, Magashule’s supporters will not let him take over without a fight.

Manyoni’s spokesperson Monnapule Ntamo welcomed the decision to dismantle the PEC yesterday. Ntamo said it was hoped the provincial task team set up by Luthuli House would allow all ANC members in the Free State to elect the new PEC. The Free State also has to appoint a new premier as Magashule must step down now he is ANC secretary-general.

A similar process will be followed in KZN where Zikalala and his executives are no longer in charge. The province has been sidelined further as no party member from there was elected into the ANC top six for the first time since 1994.

On Monday, Magashule, speaking as ANC secretary-general, said this week a delegation would go to KZN and Free State to inform members of the disbanding of the PECs. –