ANC suspends BCM councillor over leaked recording of meeting
Dywili denies allegations he shared internal proceedings of organisation on social media
A Buffalo City Metro councillor is in hot water with the ANC after he allegedly leaked a recording of a confidential party meeting.
Ward 2 councillor Akhona Dywili, who is also a branch secretary, was served with a suspension letter by ANC provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi on Wednesday.
Sources who spoke to the Daily Dispatch on Friday said Dywili had allegedly recorded a provincial dispute resolution committee meeting which he had attended, and then circulated it on social media.
“He recorded internal proceedings of the organisation and shared them with people and on social media.
“I don’t know what his motive was but there were people who disputed the processes of the branch.
“The hearing was for the dispute but we don’t understand why he recorded the hearing. It’s all over social media,” an ANC insider said.
He said the meeting was held to elect delegates to attend the party’s elective conference in December.
Dywili is alleged to be part of the ANC faction opposed to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s re-election to party presidency.
“They held a meeting incorrectly and some members of the branch launched a dispute. That’s the meeting he recorded,” said the insider, who is also a member of the regional leadership in Dr WB Rubusana.
“He sent the recording to us by mistake and he was asked what the motive of the recording was.
“I sent it at night and only realised in the morning that he sent it to the wrong people.”
He said it was suspected Dywili and his faction in the branch had worked with someone in the ANC head office to get a QR code, used to verify the legitimacy of meetings.
The insider said according to ANC processes, before branches held their branch general meetings, they were required to write to the region, which then informed the province, in order to get a QR code.
But Dywili’s branch got theirs “via the back door”, the insider alleged.
She said the grouping aligned to Dywili had wrongly constituted the dispute meeting and locked those they disagree with outside.
The Dispatch has seen a copy of the suspension letter. It states Dywili is suspended pending a disciplinary hearing by the party.
It further bars him from participating in ANC meetings or speaking on behalf of the party. Ngcukayitobi confirmed that he wrote the suspension letter and that it was in relation to the circulation of a recorded internal ANC meeting.
“People who go around recording internal discussions of the ANC and distribute them to external people, those people are transgressing the code of conduct of the organisation.
“There are other matters that relate to his conduct that the organisation is dealing with,” Ngcukayitobi said.
He said the ANC had issued warnings to Dywili before but the party had now decided to act. When contacted on Friday, Dywili denied the allegation that he had circulated a recording of the meeting.
“It’s an allegation, I did not do that.
“But I can’t speak about it because it’ sa communication of the ANC and its internal party meetings.
“Even the letter from the ANC says I should not speak,” he said.