It’s all systems go for the ANC eThekwini regional elective conference at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban on Friday.
The much-anticipated conference is set to be a two-horse race between the corruption charged and regional heavyweight Zandile Gumede and municipal speaker Thabani Nyawose. They will square off for the position of regional chairperson.
Gumede, the former mayor of eThekwini metro, is former president Jacob Zuma’s staunch supporter and is linked to the so-called Radical Economic Transformation (RET) faction of the ruling party alongside suspended secretary-general Ace Magashule.
Her opponent Nyawose is linked to a faction supporting president Cyril Ramaphosa’s re-election as party president.
On Wednesday, ANC provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli appealed for calm leading up to the conference, saying the ruling party did not anticipate legal challenges.
“We believe that we have met all the requirements for the smooth running of the regional conference. The provincial leadership has also appealed to members who support either comrade Zandile or comrade Nyawose to exercise restraint,” said Ntuli.
eThekwini is ANC’s biggest voting bloc in the country, and the outcome of the conference will influence both ANC provincial and national conferences.
It is widely believed that Nyawose’s victory will boost premier Sihle Zikalala’s ambition to be re-elected as provincial chairperson in the upcoming July elective conference. The win will also be crucial for Ramaphosa leading up to the party’s national conference in December.
While the RET forces have not pronounced on its presidential candidate, Gumede’s triumph will kickstart MEC for finance Nomusa Dube’s campaign to challenge Zikalala for the position of a premier. Dube is endorsed by the RET faction.
There is also the likelihood of a repetition of what happened in the Mpumalanga provincial conference where Mandla Msibi was elected as treasurer, but had to step aside because of murder charges he faces.
Gumede too might be elected in absentia but forced to vacate her position pending the outcome of her court case.
Her trial, which starts on July 18 at the Pietermaritzburg High Court, relates to her alleged involvement in the more than R300-million Durban Solid Waste tender that was fraudulently awarded to hand-picked service providers in 2017.
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