ANC in Russia, eyes on DA policy positions

An ANC delegation is on a working visit to Russia which began on Thursday and was due to end on Sunday. The party’s national spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri, said: “The visit follows an invitation from the United Russia Party, Russia’s largest political party and a long-standing ally and friend of the ANC.”

Bhengu-Motsiri said the delegation, led by national executive committee (NEC) member and international relations subcommittee deputy chair Obed Bapela, would have talks on “recalibration of the global”order world . to reverse the consequences of neocolonialism and the previously prevailing unipolar

Another delegate is the deputy minister of international relations & co-operation, Alvin Botes.

“It is anticipated that the delegation will also participate in the inaugural international organising committee of the inter-party forum, which includes progressive as well as fraternal movements and political parties from Africa, Asia and Latin America,” BhenguMotsiri said, adding that the delegation would report back to the ANC’s NEC on its return.

Meanwhile, fallout from the DA’s national congress will begin this week as disgruntled members decide if they still have a home in the party.

The DA has been dogged by a mass exodus of black leaders who have criticised it for being a “white party”. It has also been criticised for the way it has been running Gauteng’s three metros of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane. In Tshwane, DA mayor Randall Williams recently resigned under a cloud after the metro could not account for irregular spending of R10bn.

What needs to be watched from the DA’s two-day, 2,000strong national conference is the race bias of the party’s policy positions and whether it appeals to traditional white supporters or, more broadly, as an alternative offering to the ANC government.

Also important this week is the section 194 inquiry into the fitness of suspended public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to hold office. It is expected to resume on Monday but without Mkhwebane’s legal representatives because of a cash crunch at the office of the public protector.

In a letter to Mkhwebane on March 31, acting public protector Kholeka Gcaleka said: “At the end of February 2023 the expenditure for legal services sourced by the PPSA for the financial year in question had already exceeded the allocated budget by an amount of R12,024,178.50.”

Gcaleka said efforts to engage the Treasury on a budget adjustment for the 2023/24 financial year have been unsuccessful.

In a letter to Gcaleka, Mkhwebane said she would be without any legal representation from April, meaning that “for all intents and purposes these unfortunate developments seemingly mark the intended or inevitable end of the inquiry”.