Women's League backs Zuma

2007-11-26 22:46

Johannesburg - The Women's League has nominated ANC deputy president Jacob Zuma as its preferred candidate for party president, SABC news reported on Monday.

This flies in the face of the league's resolution, taken at its general council earlier this year, that a woman should be elected.

Members of the league were locked in a heated meeting in Parktown, Johannesburg, for almost 10 hours.

Zuma has emerged as the front-runner to be elected as party leader in Polokwane, Limpopo, next month. He is ahead of President Thabo Mbeki.

Although the submission of nominations will close at midnight (on Monday), it will be reopened at the conference.

The ANC conference in Polokwane is expected to amend the party's Constitution to ensure gender equity.

However, with the women having failed to secure 50% nomination in the presidency and in the top six party positions, pushing for the amendment will be a huge challenge.

The league's former president Winnie Madikizela-Mandela earlier backed current Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as candidate for presidency, SABC reported.

- SAPA