Mbombela - The ANC in Mpumalanga has urged a disgruntled
faction to raise its concerns in the branches.
City Press reported that Provincial ANC secretary, Lucky
Ndinisa, said during a media conference that the party was surprised some of
its members launched a campaign named “Operation Save Mpumalanga ANC” on
Wednesday ahead of a provincial general council that is expected to resolve
that Premier David Mabuza should be elected for a third term as provincial ANC
chairperson.
“You can only save the ANC by taking part in branches. We
are surprised. Branches were given powers at Mangaung to fix things and this
group must go to the branches to raise issues without any fear,” Ndinisa said.
Disenchanted ANC members from the province’s four regions
launched the campaign at the Protea Hotel in Mbombela on Wednesday.
They said that branches did not participate in the
preparations for the upcoming provincial general council. Their other concerns
were about the rigging of conferences, subversion of democratic processes, the
stifling of debates and the manipulation of branches.
The Operation Save Mpumalanga group said all these
irregularities started when Mabuza became chairperson.
Ndinisa conceded that there were challenges in the
organisation, but denied the accusations.
“As a secretary I issued letters to branches that they
should have branch general meetings before 23 February and some of those branches
did not have branch meetings for whatever reason to qualify to send delegates
to the provincial general council,” he said.
“There are challenges in the ANC. What we have noted with
regret is our inability to imbue members with the correct politics of the
organisation,” Ndinisa said.
Ndinisa said he was, however, unaware what resolutions
the delegates were going to take as mandated by their branches.
“Branches have mandates and will come up with proposals.
The ANC constitution does not have limits of terms. If members believe they
want to give a leader a chance they can do so for three or four terms,” he
said.
If the provincial general council takes the resolution
for Mabuza’s third term, it will boost his ambitions for a top-six national
executive committee position in 2017.
