Hecklers should be forgiven, says ANC’s Mabuyakhulu
KWAZULU-Natal ANC convener Mike Mabuyakhulu says party delegates who insulted him and also prevented the organisation’s chairperson Gwede Mantashe from addressing a provincial conference should be forgiven.
Mabuyakhulu, Mantashe, and ANC national executive committee (NEC) members Bheki Cele and Jackson Mthembu were at the weekend booed by delegates at the failed provincial elective conference held at the University of Zululand.
“We believe that having apologised (to Mantashe and NEC) and dealt with the mat- ter on Saturday morning with the delegates, and having laid it to rest, we think for now we should deal with the matter organisationally,” he said.
“There is an understanding that the issue stemmed out of frustration rather than aiming at insulting the national chairperson,” he added.
Mabuyakhulu’s comments come after Mantashe told Independent Media on Sunday that disciplinary action should be taken against those who had heckled him.
Provincial Sihle Zikalala had on Saturday apologised to Mantashe and the NEC for the behaviour of the delegates.
Zikalala and the angry delegates are linked to Jacob Zuma’s camp. Mabuyakhulu is a known supporter of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Emotions ran high on Friday after the delegates were informed that the Pietermaritzburg High Court had interdicted the conference, and that it would be converted into a consultative forum only to deliberate on policy matter and not elect leaders.
Unruly delegates told Mabuyakhulu before the Mantashe incident that he was “iphix phixi (hypocrite)” and that “we were not going to vote for you anyway”.
Cele and Mthembu, who were seated on the stage with other senior leaders, were booed as Zikalala was introdu- cing them.
Mabuyakhulu blamed disruption of the conference on six aggrieved members who had approached the high court seeking an interdict.
The applicants were Reshma Brijraj and Moosa Manyoni from the Lower South Coast region, Muntuza Bhekokwakhe Mkhize and Siyabonga Hlongwa from the Moses Mabhida region, and Bhekukwenza Protos Nzimande and Zoliswa Nyide from the Harry Gwala region.
Mabuyakhulu said the inter- dict had provoked strong emotions among delegates.
Delegates also sang violence-threatening songs such as “uma inkomfa yethu ingahlali kuzoliwa” (if our conference does not go ahead there will be war).
Mabuyakhulu said all the insults should be water under the bridge, as “some (of the delegates) may have been affected even more by the interdict”.
“On Saturday morning, we had a meeting with the heads of delegates and told them to sit with the delegation, and on Saturday when we began the meeting, we ended the meeting on a completely different atmosphere, which was cordial.
“I actually closed the forum on Saturday as the convener.”
He said the ANC was still studying the circumstances that led to the court interdict.
“If their action was based on malice, it becomes a basis for the breach of the ANC constitution, which then can lead to disciplinary action.
“But if the issues they raised were legitimate, we will look at these issues, and where there are genuine issues that need to be given serious attention, those matters will be given attention,” Mabuyakhulu said.
He concurred with Zikalala “that we must take serious disciplinary actions against those people (court applicants)”.
Mabuyakhulu said the provincial task team was working with its lawyers yesterday in a bid to respond to the court papers.
“We want to do it (preparing the defence case) to ensure that papers can help the court to rule in our favour,” said Mabuyakhulu.
Mantashe could not be reached for comment.
‘The issue stemmed out of frustration’