We don’t freestyle in the ANC, Nciza reads riot act to Masina
EFF says no to Joburg coalition
“We don’t freestyle in the ANC,” says ANC Gauteng provincial secretary TK Nciza in response to why Ekurhuleni regional chairperson Mzwandile Masina is facing disciplinary action.
Masina has been charged with bringing the party into disrepute for defying the provincial bosses by moving forward with the motion of no confidence against Ekurhuleni mayor Tania Campbell.
Briefing the media yesterday on the outcome of the party’s provincial executive committee (PEC), Nciza said disciplinary action would be taken against Masina for defying the PEC’s instruction.
Masina’s defiance saw the ANC in Gauteng lose out on an opportunity to gain back some semblance of control in Ekurhuleni after talks between the party and the EFF collapsed and after the regional executive committee failed to toe the party line.
“Despite the efforts of the PEC to drive the coalition discussions in a uniform manner, these efforts have been heavily weakened by the spontaneous decision of the leadership of Ekurhuleni to raise a motion of no confidence outside the normal coalition talks led by the PEC,” Nciza said. “The negotiating team extensively advised Ekurhuleni on the existing discussions led by the PEC and further advised against the motion of no confidence.
“The ANC PEC has taken a firm stance to discipline anyone found to be instrumental in the ill-discipline that took place in the negotiating period which sought to undermine the work done by the provincial team led by the PEC and national executive committee.
“The PEC has taken a firm decision that actions must be taken against the chairperson of the region of Ekurhuleni that has brought the ANC into disrepute and the PWC [provincial working committee] has been mandated to deal with the matter urgently,”
Gauteng ANC chairperson Panyaza Lesufi said the PEC met on Wednesday with the outcome that Masina brought the party into disrepute.
“In the PEC meeting there was unfortunately a debate in another forum. …the PEC felt that conduct was not acceptable and within that context we requested the PWC which is the committee empowered to deal with disciplinary matters to look into this,” he said, referring to when Masina abandoned the PEC meeting on Wednesday to conduct an hour-long TV interview.
The deepened division between the EFF and the ANC could’ have an impact on the ANC s ability to bring back former Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero after the DA’s Mpho Phalatse was reinstated following a court order that found the meeting that elected Morero to be unlawful.
Asked what this meant for the two municipalities and the relationship between the EFF and ANC, Lesufi said he believed it was still “salvageable”.
“It’s not something that can’t be rectified, and we’ve started that process of rectifying it. To say on the basis of what happened in Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg is out either for the ANC or our coalition partners, I think it’s premature. We still have time and remain hopeful we can still find each other. There’s an agreement on the table but… it could not be communicated on time ,”
Meanwhile, speaking to Newzroom Afrika yesterday, EFF leader Julius Malema said his party would not vote with the ANC in Joburg.
“Dada will be the shortest mayor in history because of his dishonest comrades, he said.