Odendaal's reasons unclear

2009-07-09 17:12

Cape Town - Cope leaders Terror Lekota and Mbhazima Shilowa said on Thursday they did not know why their number three, Lynda Odendaal, quit this week.

"She wrote me a very short letter. She did not spell out any reasons," party president Lekota told a media briefing in Cape Town.

This came after Odendaal, the political novice who became the party's second deputy president, told Cape Talk Radio that Shilowa was part of an "opportunistic" faction intent on ousting Lekota.

Lekota led the breakaway from the African National Congress last year to form the Congress of the People.

Odendaal quit on Tuesday, followed within hours by Cope elections head Simon Grindrod. Both accused the party of lacking vision and strong leadership.

Said first deputy president Shilowa: "I don't think the party should worry about what may have been said on radio."

Shilowa said he enjoyed a close working relationship with Lekota and had consistently supported the decision to have him at the head of Cope, before and since the party's inaugural meeting in December.

No leadership tussle - Dandala

"I endorsed that decision and I still endorse it... I do a lot of things, but with his permission."

The party's Parliamentary leader, Mvume Dandala, added: "I view the rumours of this with absolute contempt and want to say for once and for all there is no leadership tussle."

Shilowa said Cope would discuss the loss of its two senior members at the party national committee meeting at the weekend, and hoped that both would attend to air their grievances.

The party was sorry to see them go, and nobody would "malign" them, he added.

In the meanwhile, provincial Cope officials said they hoped the two-day meeting starting in Johannesburg on Friday would resolve their concerns about the state of the party.

"I think the members of Cope in the province are waiting with bated breath for the congress national committee meeting this week," said Thabiso Teffo, spokesperson for the Limpopo province.

Mbulelo Ncedana, Cope's Western Cape chair, said he had received letters from branches indicating that people wanted the leadership to address the issues, but that they retained their faith in the organisation.

Cope bigger than people

"Obviously, we don't enjoy people resigning, but this organisation is bigger than people in it. We are waiting for the meeting to take place tomorrow, then we will get a full report."

Deputy chair for Cope youth in Tshwane, Zelda Ngxiki, added: "It's really hard, we also as the people on the ground are asking the leadership for answers.

Grindrod this week scathingly described the party as racked by "divisions and undemocratic principles".

But Lekota said a statement by Cope youth leader Anele Mda, that Grindrod should be expelled from the party for bringing it into disrepute with his angry missive explaining his reasons for resigning, was off the mark.

"She simply jumped the gun."

He said it was baffling, following a series of leaks of internal documents, that people assumed those raising issues would be sanctioned.

"There is not an underground organisation. Some people think Cope should operate as a banned organisation," Lekota said.

It was still unclear whether Cope would appoint a new second deputy president, but Leonard Ramatlakane was expected to take Odendaal's seat in Parliament as he was next on the party's list, Shilowa said.

Internal strife

He said there was no point in mulling whether the decision to have Dandala as the party's presidential candidate in the April elections confused voters.

Cope claimed 30 seats in the National Assembly, making it South Africa's second opposition party, but it has been plagued by internal strife for most of its six months of existence.

Observers believe selecting Dandala as a compromise candidate cost the party a potential extra 2% of voter support.

"That is one for historians, because frankly nobody knew," Shilowa said.

- SAPA