ARBITRARY STEP-ASIDE RULE BACKFIRES

THE election of criminally charged ANC leaders to leadership positions is a clear warning by delegates that they won’t accept the selective application of the step-aside rule.

ANC delegates took some people by surprise when they elected corruption-accused former Durban mayor Zandile Gumede as the chairperson of eThekwini, the party’s biggest region in the country.

Gumede, aligned to the radical economic transformation (RET) camp opposing President Cyril Ramaphosa’s second-term bid, defeated municipal speaker Thabani Nyawose by 210 votes to 181. Nyawose supports the president. Gumede is facing corruption charges related to the awarding of a multimillion-rand waste management contract.

The same electoral outcome played out at the recent Mpumalanga ANC conference, which saw double murder accused Mandla Msibi emerging as the provincial treasurer. This prompted a disappointed Ramaphosa to call on the provincial executive committee (PEC) and the national executive committee (NEC) to reflect on the impact of the outcome on the ANC’s renewal project. Msibi is accused of shooting two people in Mbombela last year.

Many commentators have rightly said the election of Gumede and Msibi was bad news for Ramaphosa’s renewal project and second-term ambitions. Gumede is an outspoken critic of the president, and a close ally of former president Jacob Zuma and suspended ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule.

Her re-election appears to be a protest against the ANC’s failure to enforce its own rules without factional bias. It also seems to be a response to perceptions that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is being used by the Ramaphosa faction to influence ANC political processes.

And it’s not difficult to see why this perception has gained ground. The president’s allies, including Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane and Deputy State Security Minister Zizi Kodwa, have not been charged despite facing serious allegations. So far, most of the leaders forced to step aside have been Ramaphosa’s opponents.

So, ANC delegates are revolting against the selective application of the step-aside rule, and perceptions that the NPA has become a factional tool against Ramaphosa’s political opponents. Thus, no one should be surprised by the election of the likes of Gumede, who are seen as victims of political machinations.