How ANC chose its MPs
At least 10 criminally charged leaders won’t be candidates — but some implicated by Zondo will be
● The ANC has blocked at least 10 prominent leaders facing criminal charges from its candidate lists for the May 29 elections, but after intense talks this week decided to allow dozens implicated in state capture to contest the polls.
Out are ANC eThekwini chair Zandile Gumede, a former mayor standing trial for corruption; former Limpopo chair Danny Msiza, on charges arising from the VBS banking scandal; MPs Bongani Bongo and Mosebenzi Zwane; national executive committee (NEC) member Andile Lungisa; and former Free State MEC Motshidisi Koloi, who was charged with corruption in October last year.
The six are facing various charges in court and have been on “step aside” since the rule was introduced, while Lungisa already has a criminal record.
The rest of the 10 who have been barred are on the party’s provincial lists which, unlike the party’s national list, have not been leaked to the media. The leak, apparently from an Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) staffer, has infuriated the ANC, which says opposition parties will now unfairly have extra time to scrutinise the ANC list, which includes ID numbers.
The IEC said yesterday it had initiated an inquiry into the leak.
“Indications are that the data emanated from internal system-generated reports within the Electoral Commission. To this end, the commission has directed an enquiry to establish the circumstances and identity of the source. To the extent that the disclosed documents also contain personal information, the Electoral Commission has reported the incident to the information regulator in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act.”
The Sunday Times understands that at two crunch meetings this week, the NEC decided after lengthy discussion to block members who are facing charges. But it granted a reprieve to dozens of members named in the Zondo commission report, partly on the basis that they could bring legal action against the party.
The inclusion of those tainted by testimony at the Zondo commission drew sharp criticism yesterday, with political analyst Susan Booysen saying: “I have no doubt that this is the most compromised list imaginable.”
While the ANC’s compromise with those named by Zondo adds a semblance of party unanimity to the process, at the same time it consolidates supporters of the Cyril Ramaphosa camp.
An extended special NEC on Monday resolved, as part of guidelines applying to the list process, that those who are charged should not be on the list. According to section 3.5 of the ANC’s rules for candidate nominations, which the Sunday Times has seen, the nominated candidate must “have no criminal record or criminal charges brought by the NPA”.
In aid of the process the party devised three categories that ANC national officials, led by Ramaphosa, presented at the special NEC on Thursday.
Apart from those who have been charged, a second category included those who were fingered at the Zondo commission but have not been charged. They include sports minister Zizi Kodwa, water and sanitation deputy minister David Mahlobo, former public enterprises and finance minister Malusi Gigaba and MP Cedrick Frolick.
A third category includes those flagged by the integrity commission and includes former health minister Zweli Mkhize and former deputy justice minister Thabang Makwetla, among others.
The NEC, however, faced a deadlock on Thursday when it came to deciding the fate of those who are in the latter two categories — the Zondo list and the integrity commission reports.
According to an NEC member, the meeting was warned that removing people based on allegations could potentially be disastrous if they decided to go the legal route, which opened the way for Gigaba, Kodwa and Mahlobo making it on to the list that was sent to the IEC on Friday.
“The dilemma of the leadership of the ANC is that there are limitations to which they can trample on the rights of individuals for the sake of protecting the image of the ANC. Because these people have rights, if you remove them without due process they will take you to court and win,” said the NEC’s head of the communications subcommittee, Nkenke Kekana.
Gigaba is set to return to parliament after securing a spot in the party’s top 30, despite resigning as home affairs minister in 2018 after the Constitutional Court found he had lied under oath.
Former minister Dina Pule, who left the government under a cloud in 2013 after a damning finding by parliament’s ethics committee, is also high on the list.
Booysen said the inclusion of tainted individuals and the return of others who left public office in disgrace was inconsistent with the ANC’s renewal campaign.
“This is the death of any spark of hope that the renewal campaign is still alive.
“I have no doubt that this is the most compromised list imaginable — every variation of past wrongdoing and of course all of it unsolved. Just a few specks of disciplinary pro
cess and even in those cases there’s been a blanket forgiveness,” she said.
The list is seen as further consolidation of Ramaphosa’s power in the ANC, with his allies occupying prominent positions. They include Gwede Mantashe, Maropene Ramokgopa, Ronald Lamola, Thembi Nkadimeng, Sihle Zikalala, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and Sisisi Tolashe, who are in the top 10.
More of his allies continue to appear in the top echelons of the list, including Soviet Lekganyane, Mmamoloko Kubayi, Senzo Mchunu and Pemmy Majodina.
The list includes many young people — some born in the early ’90s — such as Zuko Godlimpi, Nonceba Mhlauli, Phumzile Mgcina and Meagan Chauke.
The ANC Youth League said it was happy that young people accounted for 17% of the names while women accounted for 52.3%.
“The ANC has consolidated, it is a changing of the guard, it’s young people, educated, skilled, who also have experience. They are not only on the national list but also in the provinces. We are happy,” said league president Collen Malatji.
Nkenke Kekana insisted that the ANC’s renewal programme had cleansed the party of state capture architects. There had been rumours that 97 ANC members had been flagged by the Zondo commission, he said.
“It’s not true, there are not 97. Many of those people have left the party, others have joined uMkhonto weSizwe. The architects of state capture have left the ANC for other parties,” he said.
An NEC member said that the list of ANC representatives came close to that of 1994. “This list, as far as I’m concerned, comes second to the 1994 list in terms of skills and quality,” said the NEC member.
“Obviously, there are a few people tainting the list but what if you remove them because they appear in Zondo’s report and they take you to court? ANC members have rights like any other citizen.”
Thirty-two prominent party leaders will not be representing the ANC in parliament by virtue of not being nominated or having declined nominations, some because they are retiring. They include Pravin Gordhan, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Malatji, Peggy Nkonyeni, Yunus Carrim, John Jeffreys, Pam Tshwete and Peace Mabe, who are retiring.