The future of the KwaZulu-Natal provincial executive committee (PEC) of the ANC chaired by Siboniso Duma now lies with the party’s national executive committee (NEC) following today’s behind closed doors meeting with the national working committee (NWC).
This was said by the party’s secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula while addressing the media in Boksburg on Friday after the meeting.
The meeting took place amid rising tension and a public fallout between the national leadership and the KZN PEC, whose vocal Provincial Secretary Bheki Mtolo implored the NEC to accept part of the responsibility for the drop in overall ANC support.
Mbalula said they met with the PEC and received inputs and made theirs. It all now lies with the NEC, the ANC’s highest decision-making structure between conferences, which will meet next week and take a decision.
“The province have presented their report, based on their own analysis in the province, and then we have presented an overall analysis of what have happened in KZN. We have also briefed them that we will now take the matter to the NWC next week before the NEC sits.
“A decision will be taken in terms of what needs to be done by the national working committee and report to the NEC. The NEC will then take a decision about what must happen in KZN. That will also apply for our later meeting with Gauteng,” Mbalula said.
The PEC went to Boksburg with speculations abound that they will be disbanded and replaced by a task team led by elders like Mike Mabuyakhulu and Sbu Ndebele.
Mbalula said in terms of what needs to be done, “there are various options”. Key to that would be re-organisation and reinforcement and rebuilding of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal.
“So, there are various options that will be considered in terms of this overall thing. It could be augmentation of the PEC, it could be disbandment and re-organize the entire structure in the province. That will be determine by the NWC and recommend to the NEC,” Mbalula told the media after the meeting.
The ANC secretary general was emphatic that they will have to take a decision in KwaZulu-Natal in order to match their political opponents, especially former President Jacob Zuma’s UMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) Party which won the province in the May 29 general elections.
The MKP won 44% of the electoral share, and reduced the ANC’s votes to 17% from 54% in 2019.
“There will be no holy cows, decisions will be taken to strengthen ourselves in that particular province. Surely people in the opposition side of politics in KZN they are riding Ferraris and we can’t respond to a Ferrari with (Toyota) conquest, we need to get into an aeroplane and fly.
“We have lost significantly in KZN. What we have emphasized here is that no blame game, we are all in this together,” Mbalula said.
Asked about Mtolo’s statement that the NEC and other party structures are also to blame for the ANC’s loss of electoral support, Mbalula said the provincial secretary’s utterance meant “nothing” because the party had been “decimated” on the watch of the PEC.
He said unlike in other provinces, the ANC lost the provinces of KZN and Gauteng.
