Johannesburg – Limpopo premier Stan Mathabatha has been accused of playing for “both sides” as the ANC gears up for its national elective conference that is likely to see ferocious battles between supporters of party president Cyril Ramaphosa and his opponents organised under the banner of Radical Economic Transformation (RET).
Despite his public support for Ramaphosa’s anticipated bid for second term as ANC president, Mathabatha, who is also the party’s provincial chairperson, has set tongues wagging in the ANC with his association with a grouping of provincial RET faction.
The Limpopo RET faction has muddied the waters with its backing of Mathabatha for re-election as the party’s provincial chairperson for the third term on the one hand, while the same faction is pushing for Ramaphosa’s ousting as party president.
Last month, Mathabatha publicly endorsed Ramaphosa’s expected bid for the second term as party president.
However, Ramaphosa’s allies have decried what they view as double standards as Mathabatha is seen as the face of what has been dubbed RET’s Operation Camouflage, which is expected to go toe-to-toe with Ramaphosa’s CR22 allies in the provincial elective conference due to take place in June.
Mathabatha’s allies who are opposed to Ramaphosa won all the regional conferences in Limpopo late last year except the Norman Mashabane region- which is the biggest.
Senior ANC members who opted to remain anonymous, as they are going to contest for leadership positions at the upcoming ANC provincial conference, said it was disingenuous of Mathabatha to say he supported CR22.
Mathabatha’s ally, Danny Msiza, who stepped aside as ANC provincial treasurer following his alleged involvement in the VBS Mutual Bank scandal, is contesting for the provincial secretary position on the same slate as Mathabatha.
Msiza did not respond to Sunday World’s request to offer clarity on whether he was allowed to contest for election as he remains suspended pending the outcome of his corruption trial expected to resume next month.
He is facing charges of racketeering, theft, fraud and money-laundering, which stem from his alleged role in the loss of about R2.3-billion at the now defunct VBS Mutual Bank.
“The ANC is bleeding to death because comrades are failing the masses once they are elected to senior positions.
If senior leaders are not respecting the step-aside rule and the people are watching, they will punish the ANC even worse than they did in the local elections.
We will regret if we don’t change our ways because we will be left with the ANC carcass, which will cease to exist in future,” said a provincial executive committee member, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The party’s provincial secretary, Soviet Lekganyane, said the developments had the potential of “eating away what is left of the ANC” after the party failed to get majority votes during the recent elections.
“The ANC is facing a credibility crisis and loss of confidence by the public.
“Factions are destroying the ANC.
Some leaders have become existential threat to the organisation and posing danger to society,” he said.
Meanwhile Bongani Mdakane reports that the convener of the biggest ANC region in the Free State, Thabo Mokoena, has pushed for Ramaphosa to stay at the helm of the party for the next five years.
He called on ANC members at the Kgubetswana Stadium in Clarens last week Saturday, to give Ramaphosa a second term as ANC president.
Mokoena’s unexpected U-turn comes after he had addressed ANC members at Kgubetswana Stadium in Clarens last week Saturday, where he had made a call for the ANC delegates and members in the region to give Ramaphosa a second term as ANC president.
Mokoena is a Speaker of Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality.
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