Mayor to take part in eThekwini election rerun
FOLLOWING a week in which newly-elected ANC eThekwini regional chairman James Nxumalo saw his bubble burst by the disbanding of his executive committee, he will again give his best shot at chairmanship.
There was talk this week among Nxumalo’s supporters that he might refuse to re-enter the race, but following a string of strategic meetings, the city mayor will contest his archrival and former treasurer Zandile Gumede.
“Second time around is always good. We have invested a lot in his image. Personally, he has nothing to do with all these problems. He also has nothing to lose,” a regional ANC official said on Friday.
Gumede is also relishing her second chance.
But the SACP chairman Nxumalo and veteran councillor Gumede remain mum.
No date for the rerun conference has been confirmed.
The provincial executive committee of the ANC officially disbanded the newlyelected regional executive committee on Thursday and temporarily replaced it with the provincial task team that assisted the region before the initial conference.
However, several eThekwini branch chairpersons and sec- retaries do not want the same provincial task team because “they are the ones who caused the mess”.
The task team is led by veteran politician and MEC Mike Mabuyakhulu and comprises ANC provincial treasurer Peggy Nkonyeni, provincial executive committeemembers Ravi Pillay, Ntombikayise Sibhidla-Saphetha, and ANC Youth League former chairmen Mxolisi Kaunda and Mthandeni Dlungwane.
The PEC held a meeting with branch chairpersons and secretaries and many leaders from Nxumalo and Gumede’s side agreed the team was polarised.
”Somebody in the PEC misled the SG (Gwede Mantashe) and whoever did that should have disciplinary actions instituted against them. The development must have been very embarrassing for the SG,” said a Gumede supporter.
KwaZulu-Natal ANC secretary Sihle Zikalala announced this week that the eThekwini conference would be rerun to allow three branches to hold their branch general meeting to qualify for the conference.
This followed an outcry post-conference when Nxumalo won by a narrow margin.
At the centre of the dispute, is the inclusion of three wards.
The ANC provincial working committee had taken “a political decision” to include Ward 16 in Pinetown, Ward 30 in Mayville/Sherwood and Ward 74 in Lamontville. But they had failed the ANC’s internal audit processes.
The disbandment has also brought the South African National Civics Organisation (Sanco) into the fray. Many Sanco members also double as branch delegates and leaders who participated in the doomed conference.
Meanwhile, Sanco said on Friday it would like observation status when the conference was constituted.
In the meantime, the ANC has appointed PEC member and Umgungundlovu District Mayor Yusuf Bhamjee to investigate allegations of fraud, cash-for-votes, illegal marches and other incidents prior and post last month’s conference.