ANC national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri has rejected nomination to go to parliament amidst allegations that there is a clandestine push to boot her out of Luthuli House after the next elections and replace her with seasoned communicator, Dakota Legoete.
Legoete, who was working with former ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe, this week rejoined the team of NEC national spokespersons at Luthuli House.
Legoete was roped in to help Bhengu-Motsiri, who is said to be struggling to come to grips with the complexities of running the organisation’s department of communications, information and publicity (DCIP).
But her symphathisers insist the spin doctor is competent – the NEC has in fact given her rave reviews – and any additions to her team are merely meant to bolster the party’s communications army during the election campaign.
Bhengu-Motsiri confirmed she has sneezed at the nomination to send her to parliament.
“I am still the national spokesperson. I am sure the ANC will appoint a national spokesperson if it must appoint somebody at some point and if I am forced to go to parliament but I am not going to parliament. I am serving the ANC as the national spokesperson until the end of my term in 2027.”
While Bhengu-Motsiri has declined the nomination to parliament, the party’s national executive committee (NEC) will tomorrow have the final say on who will join the legislature.
Legoete has downplayed his addition to the Luthuli House communications unit as the first phase of the plan to replace Bhengu-Motsiri, saying it was a mere reinforcement because there was a lot happening as it was an election season.
The move to add Legoete was not the only shake-up in the Luthuli House communication unit. The party has gone further to appoint Martina Della Togna as its new national communications manager and a new media liaison officer (MLO). Togna has replaced JP Louw, who was acting in the position, while Mothusi Ka Ndaba was roped in as the MLO, who will take over from Amos Phago.
Phago departed to become minister Thandi Modise’s spin doctor. But the new changes were not implemented without drama. Togna hit the ground running immediately after her appointment, cleaning up the internal Luthuli House WhatsApp group.
Togna this week, without delay, removed several individuals with allegiance to Bhengu-Motsiri from the group.
The casualties included her predecessor, Louw, small business development minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams’s spin doctor Cornelius Monama, communications official at Gauteng economic development, Kholiswa Kleinbooi, and Goerge Magoma. We can also reveal that those removed from the WhatsApp group were not informed of the reasons for their sudden ejection. Our informants with intimate knowledge of Luthuli House developments said this was the beginning of the end for Bhengu-Motsiri as the national spokesperson.
“It is DK (Legoete) in and Mahlengu (Bhengu-Motsiri) on her way out,mchana. Remember your (Sunday World) last story? You nailed it when you said there is discontent about her performance, but you missed the part about her being prepared for parliament. Well, that process has now officially started, as many are in agreement that DK is the best fit.”
Another deep-throat said Bhengu-Motsiri bit more than she could chew, and the top leadership was not pleased with her. “What they are doing to her is what you call upward purging. ”
Legoete downplayed the situation, saying people were pulling smoke from an unlit cigarette and claiming non-existent smoke. “I am not the national spokesperson, I am just one of the communication messengers. It is just a beef up. I mean, you have more than two thousand media outlets in the country, more than five major TV news stations, and more than 300 radio stations,” said Legoete.
“Having one person on all those platforms is not humanly possible.”
The DCIP support staff members who were removed from the WhatsApp group were also unhappy,. “Maybe that is how the new regime prefers to do things with their main people. But not even the courtesy to say, ‘we are removing you because of this and that’.”
