Limpopo’s licence with logo upsets ANC
2012-01-29 21:15
Mmnaledi Mataboge, City Press
Johannesburg - The ANC in Limpopo appears to have taken too much creative licence in modifying the party’s logo on materials used at its provincial elective conference in December.
The ANC in the province printed the party’s logo in the middle of an outline of a baobab tree on T-shirts, bags and documents distributed to delegates at the conference – a move that threatens to put its leadership on a collision course with Luthuli House.
An ANC national executive committee (NEC) member who preferred to remain anonymous because the national leadership is yet to speak on the matter, said it was “unheard of” to add anything to the party’s logo.
“It’s not right, they must actually be called to account.”
The baobab tree “doesn’t feature anywhere in the ANC’s history”, he said.
ANC national spokesperson Keith Khoza said it was “certainly inappropriate” for Limpopo to tamper with the logo.
“The principle remains that an ANC logo must be used as it is and nothing else. If you do that [modify it] it ceases to be an ANC logo. It is not consistent with the directives of the use of the ANC logo.”
Khoza said the logo must always stand alone. “That’s why with the centenary celebrations we had to design a separate logo and print it on the other side of the T-shirts.”
Nothing sinister
Amid questions about whether the ANC in Limpopo wanted to “declare independence” from Luthuli House, provincial spokesperson Makondelele Mathivha said there was nothing sinister behind the modified logo and the province regretted offending anyone.
“It was an attempt to show what we are known for in Limpopo. It doesn’t undermine the party’s logo in any way”.
Not a single person, including ANC NEC deployees led by Mathole Motshekga, raised concerns about the logo at the conference, said Mathivha.
He said former provincial secretary Joe Maswanganyi “must have approved” the logo.
“For people to adopt things like this they must have had a committee agreeing on it.”
The ANC in Limpopo was willing to explain itself to the national leadership if asked to do so.
Maswanganyi referred questions to David Masondo, who until recently was the party’s spokesperson in the province.
However, a provincial executive committee (PEC) member who wanted to remain anonymous admitted wrongdoing on the part of the PEC, but insisted it was an innocent move.
Hindsight
“There were no political considerations or statements with the logo. It’s just a young person trying to be creative. The way they rationalise it is to say it shows the ANC in Limpopo, but the ANC won’t accept that explanation.”
It was the PEC’s collective responsibility to take the blame, said the leader.
“I know it’s wrong because it doesn’t matter where the ANC is, the logo remains one. All of us as PEC approved this thing, we need to own up.
“From where we were sitting at the time we didn’t think it was a big issue, but with hindsight I see that we shouldn’t have done it.”