ANC ‘deploys’ Jordaan to election duty
PORT ELIZABETH: The ANC in Nelson Mandela Bay yesterday said former mayor Danny Jordaan had not been demoted but rather “promoted” to do election work following his resignation as the party’s leader.
The next election would take place in 2019.
Jordaan was not present at the media briefing where the party officially announced he had tendered his resignation and would be assigned to a new role outside the council.
Jordaan’s deputy, Bicks Ndoni, would take on the role as party leader for Nelson Mandela Bay with immediate effect.
“He did not resign of his own accord. There were discussions and finally there was a decision that he must rather resign and concentrate on what he has been assigned to do,” said Ndoni.
When asked what Jordaan’s specific duties would entail, Ndoni said his role would include “focusing solely on elections” and this formed part of a permanent strategy.
ANC regional task team co-ordinator Bheza Ntshona said following the ANC’s consultative conference last month, a collective decision was made that Jordaan and a team would focus on drumming-up support in the city’s northern areas following the party’s dismal performance at the polls.
“We have agreed that while we will be intensifying our efforts in our own traditional areas, we do need a team that will focus on the northern areas. After reviewing our strategy we felt that comrade Danny Jordaan must be released to assume those responsibilities.”
Responding to a myriad questions on Jordaan’s resignation and absenteeism at council meetings, ANC chief whip Litho Suka quickly came to the former mayor’s defence and said Jordaan was not “unfaithful or ill-disciplined” to the ANC.
Following the ANC’s loss to the DA-led coalition in the metro in the local government elections, Jordaan has been a no-show at council meetings.
The ANC previously said he was on sick leave.
Jordaan, the president of the South African Football Association, was deployed by the ANC to Nelson Mandela Bay in June last year to serve as executive mayor after the regional executive committee disbanded in January the same year.
But the DA took control of the province with 47 percent of the vote in the municipal elections and Jordaan lost the mayoral race to Athol Trollip.
The ANC said it was not in a position to comment on reports which stated that Jordaan had attended several Safa meetings in Johannesburg, but was, however, at the time cited as being ill by the ANC in Port Elizabeth.
On Jordaan’s absenteeism at the media briefing yesterday, the ANC said Jordaan had been “deployed elsewhere”.