Motlanthe not leaving govt yet
2012-12-18 22:01
Bloemfontein - Reports that Kgalema Motlanthe was leaving government immediately should be treated as rumours, his spokesperson Thabo Masebe said on Tuesday evening.
"I'm not aware of this, he hasn't said anything to me," Masebe told Sapa.
"Treat them [tweets] as rumours. For now he remains the deputy president of the republic."
Jacaranda FM on Tuesday evening wrote on the social networking site twitter reports were emerging that "Kgalema to leave government immediately".
Earlier, NewsFire reported that Motlanthe delivered an unscheduled
message to the 53rd national conference of the ANC in Mangaung on
Tuesday evening, bidding farewell as an official after serving in the
top six for 15 years.
In another surprise move, Motlanthe
declined nomination as an additional member of the ANC national
executive committee (NEC), signalling a complete withdrawal from the ANC
leadership.
ANC spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said the party was not aware that Motlanthe was planning to decline nomination to the NEC.
"It was between him and the electoral commission," he said.
Motlanthe
received rousing applause and a standing ovation as he took to the
podium to make the address in which he congratulated and wished the
newly elected leadership well.
He repeated the sentiments of
President Jacob Zuma earlier in the day when he asked the ANC to recover
from the divisions besieging the organisation and unite behind the new
leaders.
"I wish you strength and wisdom in uniting ANC and its
leagues, the alliance and most important of all, all South Africans,"
Motlanthe said.
"One thing alone needs to be said: the ANC is
the epitome of democracy and so we must continue to champion democracy
in our country and the world over," Motlanthe, still the country’s
deputy president, said.
He said the ANC should continue to lead in deracialising and eliminating sexism.
We
must continue to sharpen our ability to hear the cries of our people...
attending to the economic challenges of unemployment, inequality and
poverty, utilising the mandate given to us by our people.”
He said the ANC should address these challenges with full confidence in its leaders.
"They
will outdo themselves. Our leaders were elected by the entire
leadership of the ANC. And so as we continue with our deliberations in
the commissions, keep that in mind, doing this work under the watch and
guidance of a very capable leadership we have elected," Motlanthe said.
Motlanthe
thanked the new officials of the ANC for allowing him to bid farewell
to the ANC, particularly Zuma who allowed Motlanthe to speak after him
in a departure of ANC protocol.
"I feel very privileged. Thank you, you have done us proud," Motlanthe said, before leaving the stage to loud cheers.
When
the electoral commission began announcing names for the NEC, conference
was informed that Motlanthe had declined nomination as an additional
member.
This means Motlanthe is effectively retiring from the
leadership of the ANC. It is not yet known whether this has implications
for his position in government.
- SAPA
