Johannesburg – ANC top six officials will be meeting today with the two warring factions of its former Umkhonto we Sizwe combatants in renewed efforts to unite the two formations.
Sparks are expected to fly when leaders of the Umkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans (MKMVA) come face to face with their counterparts in the MK National Council as the governing party tries to merge the two into a single formation.
The national working committee (NWC), which is the ANC’s day-to-day management structure, this week instructed the two formations to consider dissolving and working towards being a single structure.
A preparatory committee was also formed ahead of the proposed unity conference, with an invitation issued for two members from each of the two factions to form the committee.
MKMVA president Kebby Maphatsoe has already indicated that they were opposed to the move to dissolve the organisation.
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It has emerged that the MKMVA leadership believes that the disbandment of the structure forms part of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s strategy to consolidate power in the organisation.
The MKMVA are vocal supporters of suspended ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule and former president Jacob Zuma.
Tomorrow’s meeting will also include the party’s peace and stability committee, which is chaired by Tony Yengeni, a Magashule ally who is also sympathetic to the MKMVA.
Asked if the structure was dissolving as per the recommendation of the NWC, Maphatsoe seemed to dig in his heels.
“We want to know the reasons [for the dissolution]. We are hoping that we will be briefed about the consideration,” he said.
ANC deputy general-secretary Jessie Duarte said that after the NWC meeting, it was agreed that the two organisations should consider dissolving and working towards a unity conference as per the resolution of the party’s conference in 2017.
But an MKMVA leader said they were already preparing court papers to fight their disbandment.
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“We are nowhere in the constitution of the ANC. We are like Cosatu, SACP and Sanco [South African National Civic Organisation]. The ANC has no legal standing on disbanding us.
“The CR faction (Ramaphosa’s grouping) wants to destroy people who are aligned to JZ (Zuma) and support the SG (Magashule),” the leader said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
However, ANC Veterans League president Snuki Zikalala said they supported the dissolution of both organisations and the establishment of one formation of the ex-MK combatants.
“MKMVA is not a political organisation. MKMVA has to follow the instructions of the ANC.”
It was expected that Maphatsoe and his allies would also take the fight to the ANC’s national executive committee, the highest decision-making body between conferences, which meets during the weekend of June 25.
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