Tony Yengeni resigns
2003-03-05 13:49
Willem Jordaan
Cape Town - Former ANC chief whip Tony Yengeni has resigned from parliament.
Sources told News24 that Yengeni, found guilty on fraud charges, had tendered his resignation to the ANC leadership on Wednesday morning.
ANC chief whip Nathi Nhleko, confirmed Yengeni's resignation.
"It was expected of him, which is why it was the right decision from his side," Nhleko said.
His resignation comes amid growing division within the ANC as to how the issue should have been resolved.
National assembly (NA) speaker Dr Frene Ginwala said that at the very least, the national assembly should have expressed strong disapproval, as Yengeni had deliberately deceived the NA and brought the integrity of parliament into disrepute.
After ANC communications chief Smuts Ngonyama said that Yengeni still enjoyed widespread support - despite being found guilty of fraud - an ANC caucus scrambled to prevent Yengeni from being publicly rebuked, despite calls from Ginwala to the contrary.
The national assembly will sit at 15:00 on Wednesday afternoon to decide whether Yengeni had indeed misled parliament. An official announcement is expected later on Wednesday.
- Die Burger