Disgruntled Sedibeng ANC regional executive committee (REC) members have applied for a court order to set aside the Gauteng provincial executive committee’s decision to dissolve the regional executive committee.
The order also seeks to have the PEC and ANC national executive committee’s decision to appoint the regional task teamand for all decisions taken by the task team to be declared unlawful and set aside.
In his affidavit, Oupa Molotsoane of the Futheli Ledula ANC branch,said the region held its 13th elective conference at the St George Hotelin Tshwane from June 30 to July 18 last year, where a new regional executive committee was elected.
He said the election was preceded bydisagreement over the credentials of certain delegates who attended the conference but that the new leaders were eventually elected after the adoption of the credentials.
He said the conference was attended by Gauteng provincial chairman David Makhura and ANC heavyweights Enoch Godongwane and Sizakele Malobane-Nkosi.
Molotsoane said the newly elected executive committee members assumed office in December but to their chagrin, it was disbanded at the behest of the Gauteng PEC after five months.
He said the committee was dissolved after delegates from wards nine and 10 questioned the legitimacy of certain delegates who had attended the conference, even though their objections were dismissed by the party’s dispute resolution committee.
He also said the delegates’ complaints were later investigated by Senzo Mchunu, who compiled a report in which he called for unity and organisational renewal in the region.
As as result of the report, he said, the PEC disbanded the region.
“This is conspicuous because, on its own terms, the Mchunu report did not recommend that the PEC should dissolve the elected REC. Further, and even more concerningly, the elected REC [whose rights were clearly and adversely affected by the Gauteng ANC PEC’s decision] was never consulted,” read the affidavit.
Molotsoane also complained the committee was disbanded even though they had lodged an appeal with the upper structures of the organisation and the outcome was still pending.
He said another ANC heavyweight, Joe Maswanganyi, investigated the matter and produced a report that recommended that the dissolved structure be reinstated to complete its term of office but it was ignored by the PEC.
ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said the organisation will oppose the application because it acted in the best interest of the region.
