The mishandling of the ANC NEC’s decision to reconfigure ANC Gauteng as well as KwaZulu-Natal provincial executive committees (PECs) led to the collapse of plans to host a PEC meeting and a provincial lekgotla to discuss, among other things, the state of the province address (Sopa).
According to ANC leaders close to the reconfiguration process, after ANC second deputy secretary-general Maropene Ramokgopa told the Gauteng PEC that they were disbanded before the compilation of the names for the provincial task team (PTT), everything came to a standstill and a leadership vacuum was created.
As a result, a PEC meeting that was billed for last Thursday and Friday, which would have been followed by a provincial lekgotla on Saturday and Sunday, was abandoned.
This as Gauteng PEC leaders feared appearing defiant against Luthuli House following Ramokgopa’s misrepresentation.
“Because a national leader had told us that we were disbanded pronto, we could not do anything as we had to toe the line as per that communication by the second DSG (Ramokgopa),” said a former PEC member, now a member of the PTT.
Ramokgopa’s miscommunication, according to a furious ANC national leader, was reckless and avoidable had she given the situation more thought.
The leader said first DSG Nomvula Mokonyane’s communication in KwaZulu-Natal, where she had told the PEC to remain in place until there was a fully constituted PTT, was the correct way.
“Mama Action, whom many were blaming, saying she was wrong, was politically correct with her communication to the KZN PEC.
“The young Ramokgopa is the one who messed things up by telling Gauteng PEC they were disbanded immediately,” said the national leader.
“We had a crisis in Gauteng, which went to Sopa without having a provincial lekgotla because they were told that they were disbanded immediately.
“They were misled. Gauteng had to do some patchwork as a result of that. That Sopa was almost subjected to what happened in Cape Town to the national budget speech, a postponement that would have been an embarrassment,” the leader said.
“The issues ended up being discussed at the provincial exco (executive council) level because they have a GPU (government of national unity), but the ANC itself had to do patchwork through the provincial legislature caucus.”
The highly ranked leader said the leadership vacuum created by Ramokgopa’s communication mishap was unfortunate.
“In the ANC, there is never a leadership vacuum; you vacate a position only when a new structure replacing you is elected or appointed.
“It is political immaturity to tell people they are disbanded immediately when there is no new structure in place. That was reckless.”
A Gauteng leader said that, despite the disruption, the forging ahead of Sopa showed the leadership prowess of Premier Panyaza Lesufi.
However, a national leader who is Ramokgopa’s sympathiser said the decision to inform the PEC of the reconfiguration of the structure was taken by the NEC of the ANC and she was requested to go and inform the PEC of the decision.
“The decision meant that the PEC had no legal authority to preside over any activity of the ANC on the provincial level. That is the message she communicated. The national office met with the premier and his team.
They were satisfied with the alignment of Sopa and with the National Lekgotla of the ANC’s priorities as well as the Sona’s priorities. The premier assured national leaders that he did adequate consultation even before the reconfiguration. All went well,” said the sympathiser.
