ANC Northern Cape strongman Zamani Saul has been re-elected as chairperson of the party in the province for the third time. This happened at the provincial conference in Kimberley on Tuesday.
Saul was appointed alongside Bently Vass, who is his deputy. Daluxolo Nxanga was elected secretary, Maruping Lekwene is the deputy secretary, while Fufe Makatong is the treasurer. The new development sees the leadership of the province remain unchanged for yet another term.
President’s ally
Saul, a known Cyril Ramaphosa ally, was elected unopposed as the party’s Northern Cape leader at the conferences which hosted 592 voting delegates.
The regional delegations consisted of 37 branches from the John Taolo Gaetsewe. ZF Mgcawu had 34 branches and 29 were from Namakwa.
And the Frances Baard Region and Pixley ka Seme had 50 and 40 branches respectively. All were attending the provincial conference.
Saul was first elected to the position in 2017, then again in 2021. He is currently serving his second term as the premier of the Northern Cape.
Dwindling support
Under his leadership the province achieved 49.24% support in the province at the 2024 general elections. This was a decrease from the 57.54 obtained in 2019.
A source told Sunday World that there is nothing untoward about Saul’s re-election. It “amplifies the ANC Northern Cape’s stability and mirrors its unity”, said the source.
“Most regions were on retention mode. While in Frances Baard and ZF Mgcawu regions, it was cosmetic. Hence, the provincial conference was expected to be a no-show in terms of contestations,” according to the source.
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