The Afrika Mayibuye Movement’s freshly demoted first deputy president, Nolubabalo Mcinga, has thrust her political spear straight into the hearts of her former comrades, branding them gossipmongers, cowards, hypocrites, and perpetrators of gender-based violence in politics.
In a statement released on Friday, Mcinga said her sudden removal from the top position was nothing short of political bloodletting disguised as discipline.
She accused the movement’s leadership of using gossip and intimidation to silence dissenting voices — especially strong women who refuse to bow before male authority.
“The recall process was carried out without following correct procedures. No formal charge sheet was issued, no right of reply was given, and no impartial hearing took place. This is not discipline — it is cowardice disguised as order,” she charged.
According to Mcinga, she was recalled after being accused of secretly meeting former president Jacob Zuma and former uMkhonto weSizwe (MKP) provincial leader in Mpumalanga, Mary Phadi.
She did not deny the meetings but challenged the motive imputed to her, saying the encounters were legitimate, transparent, and squarely within the remit of her duties as first deputy president.
“The meeting with president Jacob Zuma was personal and had nothing to do with the Afrika Mayibuye Movement,” she said.
“President Jacob Zuma has never been an enemy to me and will never be. I am a true Pan-Africanist who believes in unity among Africans and authenticity in leadership. My membership in both MKP and Mayibuye remains active.”
Threat to pursue legal action
Mcinga tore into Mayibuye’s internal culture, accusing the movement of degenerating into “something worse than a cult” that thrives on gossip, fear and top-down control rather than truth and courage.
She argued the recall betrayed the movement’s own Restoration Manifesto, which she said calls for courage, truth-telling, and rejection of gossip.
“If leaders cannot think freely or have their views, what kind of South Africa are we building?
“If everyone must see through the eyes of one man, where will the next Chris Hani, Steve Biko, Jacob Zuma, Julius Malema, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, or Charlotte Maxeke come from?” she asked.
Mcinga also refuted allegations she had promised work to a public relations company or circulated voice notes.
She insisted any recording made without consent was illegal and vowed to pursue legal action against those who spread falsehoods.
She also said the alleged promises of salary and VIP protection were “personally from Mr Floyd Nyiko Shivambu”, calling the saga “a painful political lesson”.
“Loyalty should never be servitude, and truth should never be considered rebellion,” she said, before promising a press briefing to produce evidence and answer questions.
Unauthorised meetings
Her statement landed in the same news cycle as an emphatic post by Shivambu on X at 8am on Friday, which framed the recall as a unanimous decision by national officials and emphasised discipline and organisational unity.
“Yesterday the national officials unanimously took a decision to remove the first deputy president of the Afrika Mayibuye Movement permanently and retained her membership of the organisation so that she can be held accountable for having unacceptable and unauthorised meeting[s] with leaders of other political parties,” wrote Shivambu.
“There’s no one who will destabilise the people’s mandate, the only organisation founded by an overwhelming mandate of the people of South Africa.
“Let’s now focus on the establishment of structures at all levels and prepare for the battles ahead. It’s total freedom and emancipation now. Mayibuye iAfrika!”
Shivambu’s post underlines the gulf: his camp frames the move as necessary for discipline and the protection of the movement’s mandate; Mcinga frames it as a crude, procedural betrayal and an act of gendered political violence.
The rupture raises questions about internal accountability and the role of influence and loyalty in Mayibuye’s corridors of power.
For now, Mcinga remains defiant — a traditional leader and community activist promising to expose what she calls a campaign of humiliation, while the movement insists it has acted to safeguard its unity and revolutionary focus.
