President Cyril Ramaphosa is in pole position to retain his position as ANC leader when the ruling party gathers to elect new leadership in December, data from the party’s electoral committee show.
With nearly all the party branches across the country having nominated their preferred leaders, Ramaphosa received the nod from 2 037 branches while his challenger Zweli Mkhize was favored by 916 branches.
Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and her tourism counterpart Lindiwe Sisulu, who have both expressed a desire to unseat Ramaphosa, failed to make the cut.
However, they can still be nominated from the floor of the elective conference, should they garner at least 25% of the votes.
ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile is leading the race for the deputy president position with 1 791 nominations. Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola received 427, and Eastern Cape chairperson Oscar Mabuyane is third with 397.
The nominations spell doom for incumbent ANC deputy president David Mabuza, who now must rely on delegates to the conference to give him a fighting chance.
The race for the powerful secretary-general position, currently held by suspended Ace Magashule, seems to be going down the wire. Former KwaZulu-Natal secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli is leading the race with 1 225 nominations, followed by Phumulo Masualle with 889 and Fikile Mbalula with 749.
A two-horse contest between Nomvula Mokonyane and Febe Potgieter is unfolding with Mokonyane having garnered 1 779 nominations against Potgieter’s 905. The ultimate winner will replace the late Jessie Duarte as deputy secretary general.
Incumbent national chairperson Gwede Mantashe seems to have a fighting chance to retain his position.
Mantashe, who is also the minister of energy and mineral resources, has received 978 nominations, second to ANC Limpopo leader Stan Mathabatha who got the nod from 1 492 branches and Deputy Minister of Finance David Masondo who received 501 nominations.
Former president Jacob Zuma, who has raised his hand for the chairperson position, will also have to convince delegates why he is worthy to be nominated.
The tightest race seems to be the one for treasurer-general position, with Ramaphosa’s political advisor Bejani Chauke leading the pack with 552 nominations, followed by the party’s spokesperson Pule Mabe with 428 and former Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina with 348 nominations.
“Our records indicate that a total of 3 543 out of a grand total of 3 982 branches in good standing have held successful branch general meetings which produced the approved outcomes of the nominations for both branch delegates and NEC [national executive committee] candidates,” said Kgalema Motlanthe, electoral committee chairperson.
“This effectively means that 89% of the ANC branches have successfully participated in the nomination process, thus comfortably surpassing the 70% threshold required for the national conference to take place as per the ANC constitution.”
Sunday World reported two weeks ago that Ramaphosa walked a tightrope at the NEC’s last meeting before the elective conference, as he tried to shrug off the Phala Phala scandal, after his ANC opponents sought to use it to dislodge him from both the party’s and country’s presidency.
He told the ANC top brass that he never sent anyone to hunt for millions of US dollars which were stolen at his farm in Limpopo in 2020.
A report emerged on Thursday purportedly from the party’s integrity commission which said it could not hold the president liable for the theft at his farm.
Those opposed to Ramaphosa’s re-election as ANC president are now counting on the outcome of an independent panel appointed by parliament to probe whether he has a case to answer.
The panel, headed by former chief justice Sandile Ngcobo, is considering evidence placed before it on the Phala Phala matter.
Ramaphosa’s security head, Wally Rhoode, is facing an internal police disciplinary hearing for failing to officially report the matter to the police and allegedly conducting a clandestine investigation.
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