Limpopo public works MEC Dickson Masemola says he is not afraid of being kicked out of the provincial cabinet should he fail in his bid to oust premier Stan Mathabatha as the ANC provincial chairperson.
With the conference taking place in just over two months, the two blocs contesting control of the province are ratcheting up their campaigns.
Masemola is now going to stand against Mathabatha for the second time, despite Mathabatha having reappointed him to his provincial cabinet.
Pressed on whether he is worried that should he lose the contest he is likely to be thrown into the wilderness, Masemola was unfazed.
“My service to the people of Limpopo is not about me and at no point will I be tempted to make it to be about me. The branches determine leadership and the process that pre-occupy us as leaders is the course of national purpose we are called upon to perform or serve and nothing else,” he said.
“Understandably, the internal democracy in the ANC finds expression and deepens when contests occur because it’s not about individuals but an organisational process that seeks to build and contribute to the renewal and revival of the ANC,” he added.
Masemola has teamed up with ANC provincial secretary Soviet Lekganyane in their bid to topple Mathabatha, who is said by sources to be upset that the MEC is taking him on again.
In his corner, Mathabatha has provincial treasurer Danny Msiza as an ace up his sleeve.
Masemola is the former deputy provincial chairperson and was axed from Mathabatha’s cabinet after losing to him in the contest to succeed Cassel Mathale as provincial chairperson.
Those close to Mathabatha said he was upset with Masemola and was likely to drop him should he win another term.
“Branches of the ANC as basic units of the organisation determine leadership of the organisation and I have been approached by many branches in the province to stand and contest for the position of chairperson. Understanding the culture and tradition of the ANC on matters of leadership selection I cannot, as a disciplined member of the ANC, disappoint those branches which have confidence in me regarding the upcoming provincial conference,” said Masemola.
He said it was not a matter of slates but preferences of collective leadership, which can make a significant contribution to the renewal programmes of the ANC.
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