Fresh from a crushing defeat during the May provincial and national elections, the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal faces another uphill battle.
This time, the party, which was once a dominant force in the province, will square off with its detractors, who have defected to the former President Jacob Zuma-led uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party in several municipal by-elections.
The Umzumbe local municipality falls under the Ugu district on the south coast of the province, where the ANC sacked six councillors for defying the party line and voting with the opposition as part of a protest.
Expelled ANC councillors joined the MK Party
The councillors subsequently joined the MK Party, charging that the ANC-led council was riddled with corruption and misgovernance.
ANC KwaZulu-Natal provincial chairman Siboniso Duma believed the party took the right decision to expel the councillors.
“They were given an opportunity to repent, but their behaviour persisted. The [councillors] left us with no other choice. But it’s part of democracy. People have a right to join whatever political party they want,” he said.
Duma also conceded that while the ANC has suffered an electoral setback in KZN, not all is lost. The party only managed to get 16% of the provincial vote and garnered 14 seats in the provincial legislature. It shed 30 seats from what it had from the previous administration.
Party working to fix problems
“We know where the problems are, and the ANC is working hard to fix them. But people still love the ANC,” said Duma.
Duma, together with minister of police, Bheki Cele, comes from the village of Umzumbe.
Other by-elections are being held in Umvoti. It is headquartered in the rural towns of Greytown, Uphongolo, Nongoma, UMzimkhulu, Melmoth, also known as Mthonjaneni, and Newcastle.
KwaZulu-Natal elections head Ntombifuthi Masinga explained that the IEC stands ready to administer Wednesday’s by-elections.
“Our systems are ready because we have now switched off the main elections. We activated them for the by-elections in various municipalities,” said Masinga.
The voting will take place in 72 voting stations.
