Furniture and vehicles belonging to the ANC in North West were attached and removed on Monday after the party failed to pay more than R1.1-million to three of its own organisers – despite attempts to resolve the matter before enforcement.
The removals, carried out by the High Court sheriff, followed a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) default award granted in favour of the organisers, who had taken the party to arbitration over unpaid salaries dating back to 2022.
The organisers – named in the arbitration papers – had been deployed in regional structures across the province. Their case, built on accumulated unpaid wages, was not opposed.
“The organisation was not represented, and the matter proceeded,” the CCMA record states.
With no answering version from the ANC, the commissioner ruled on the evidence before her. “Having no other version before me, I accept the testimony of the applicant,” the award reads.
The ruling directed the party to pay more than R1.1-million.
Before enforcement, there were attempts to avoid this outcome.
Correspondence linked to the matter shows that the organisers, through representatives, sought to engage the ANC after the award was issued.
The intention was to secure payment without invoking the sheriff.
Those efforts did not result in any settlement.
The documents reflect repeated attempts to prompt compliance, but no payment was made and no arrangement was concluded.
That impasse set the next step in motion.
The award was certified, a writ was issued, and on Monday the sheriff proceeded to attach movable assets belonging to the ANC’s provincial structure.
Office furniture and vehicles were identified, listed and removed.
The amounts awarded reflect unpaid remuneration rather than damages.
Records indicate the organisers earned about R15 000 per month, with the total reflecting salary arrears accumulated over time.
Internal legal analysis suggests the party’s position became increasingly difficult to recover once it failed to participate in the proceedings.
“It will be very difficult to sustain any rescission application,” the report notes, citing both the delay in challenging the award and the earlier absence at arbitration.
The CCMA ruling itself is framed within uncontested evidence. With no defence placed before the commissioner, the outcome followed the version presented by the organisers – a position explicitly recorded in the award.
The sequence is set out in the documents: the party “was not represented”, the matter “proceeded”, and the commissioner “accept[ed] the testimony of the applicant”.
For the organisers, the shift from engagement to enforcement followed months of waiting after the ruling.
For the ANC in North West, Monday marked the point at which non-payment translated into execution – assets were removed under court authority in satisfaction of a debt that remained outstanding.
The ANC North West did not respond to our questions.
- ANC in North West had furniture and vehicles seized on Monday.
- The seizure was due to the party's failure to pay over R1.1 million owed to three of its own organisers.
- Attempts were made to resolve the payment dispute before enforcement action.
- The assets were attached and removed as a result of non-payment.
- Further details are available in the e-edition of Sunday World.
