The new national organiser of the Umkhonto Wesizwe (MK) Party has begun cracking the whip on members who are holding several positions.

Joe Ndhlela has written to all party members and told them to relinquish some of the positions and stick to one.

In a letter dated 07 December 2024, Ndhlela reminded members that the founder and President of the party, Jacob Zuma has made it clear that for accountability purposes, those in parliament or in government, cannot hold positions in the party. 

“We hope this letter finds you in excellent health and high spirits. As we continue to build and strengthen our party, we would like to remind everyone that our party’s Constitution does not allow members to hold more than one position simultaneously.

“We understand that some of you may have taken on multiple roles with the best intentions, but we must ensure that our party’s structure and governance are maintained,” Ndlela wrote in the letter.

He said the members holding multiple positions should act with immediate effect. 

“These pronouncements by His Excellency Cde President Zuma have been adopted by the National High Command and are now part of our deployment policy.

“Therefore, we kindly request that members who currently occupy multiple positions within the party relinquish such positions with immediate effect and retain only one position. This will enable us to maintain a cohesive and effective leadership structure,” he said. 

It is not clear whether any member of the party has so far heeded the directive from Ndhlela.