Hobson’s choice for Ace
● NEC orders suspended ANC secretary-general to apologise publicly for his conduct post-suspension or face disciplinary action ● Duarte takes the reins as top officials are mandated to speak to Magashule and set the deadline for the apology
Suspended ANC secretarygeneral Ace Magashule has been left with no room to manoeuvre after the party yesterday told him to back down in his defiance of its leadership or be punished.
In a move that appeared to strengthen President Cyril Ramaphosa’s hand against his opponents in the ANC, the national executive committee (NEC) ordered Magashule to publicly apologise over his behaviour related to the letter he wrote to Ramaphosa suspending him, or face disciplinary action.
The NEC further dealt a blow to Magashule allies’ attempts to collapse the party’s top structure and force an early conference by backing the president and lamenting Magashule’s defiance, which it described as being against the party’s values.
Magashule was suspended by the ANC last week after failing to step aside from his powerful position alongside other party leaders who are formally charged with corruption and other serious crimes.
Magashule rejected the suspension letter sent to him by his deputy Jessie Duarte as “null and void” and, in a surprise move, unilaterally slapped Ramaphosa with a suspension letter as he said the “step aside” rule was being implemented to target him.
Magashule also accused the
NEC of being factionalised in favour of Ramaphosa.
Yesterday, Ramaphosa, delivering the closing address of the three-day meeting, said the NEC had frowned on Magashule’s behaviour and recommended that disciplinary action be instituted against him if he did not heed the call to make a public apology.
“The NEC agreed that such conduct was completely unacceptable and a flagrant violation of the rules, norms and values of the ANC,” Ramaphosa said.
Magashule and suspended ANC MP Bongani Bongo had attended the NEC meeting but were booted out as the party’s top brass pointed out that they had no authority to attend during their suspensions.
Ramaphosa said the officials had now been tasked with giving Magashule a “set time frame” to apologise to structures and members of the ANC.
“If he fails to do so, the ANC will institute disciplinary procedures in accordance with the ANC constitution,” he said.
Director of research at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection, Prof Susan Booysen, said it was unlikely that Magushule would issue the apology.
“What he is likely to do is hijack and disrupt the disciplinary process that will follow and I am pretty sure the NEC expects that much. They will just have to stay the course and play him stroke for stroke. It is going to be a long and exasperating thing,” Booysen said.
Booysen said Magashule has so far “played his best cards” but that this has not resulted in significant support and backing for him and that he risked expulsion.
“I think he is toying with expulsion and I guess the NEC has to prepare itself for Magashule refusing to accept it,” she said.
While Magashule has insisted that he would continue carrying out his job as the party’s organisational head, Ramaphosa pointed out yesterday that the NEC has given all such powers to Duarte.
Ramaphosa said Duarte and staff at Luthuli House had been subjected to attacks, insults and threats over the implementation of Magashule’s suspension.
“We have also noted with great concern death threats made against ANC NEC coordinator Andries Nel and agreed that this should be reported to the relevant authorities.
“The NEC expresses its full confidence in Duarte and supports her in carrying out her duties as per the ANC constitution,” he said.
Political analyst Prof Mcebisi Ndletyana said it was unlikely that the ANC would be lenient on Magashule if he continued with defiance.
“The harshest possible punishment in this case is expulsion. He has sowed divisions, breached protocol and all manner of conduct,” Ndletyana said.
When asked by Sowetan if he would apologise, Magashule said he would respond later but could not be reached for comment thereafter.
Several branches that gathered in support of Magashule in eThekwini, KZN, indicated that they would openly back him and fight his removal by the NEC.
The ANC Women’s League has abandoned Magashule and instead called on him to “consider humbling himself