Precious Banda is accused of identity fraud. (Image via ANC Twitter)
Allegations of identity fraud have rocked the recently established ANC national youth task team (NYTT) after one of its members seemingly used someone else’s identity number to qualify to sit on the structure.
The Mail & Guardian has established that Precious Banda, who appears as number 34 on the 34-member NYTT, tasked with taking the ANC Youth League to the ANC’s national conference, is using the identity number of Ntshunxeko Thelma Banda, who is from Giyani in Limpopo.
The M&G conducted a search on Precious’s identity number as contained in the official NYTT members’ list, and found that the listed number does not belong to Precious.
The search followed a tip-off from within the NYTT and its members, who allege that Precious was engaged in an elaborate identity fraud scheme in order to be part of the youth structure.
Membership of the task team, which was announced in April, has been a contested terrain, including failed attempts in February by suspended ANC secretary general Ace Magashule to boost the NYTT with members loyal to him.
Along with the disbanded military veterans’ structure and the ANC Women’s League, the youth league has re-emerged as a player in the ANC’s factional battles; especially leading up to a national general council (NGC), which includes a midterm review and which has been slated for this year, as well as next year’s national conference.
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Magashule hopes to overturn his suspension at the NGC with the help of the party’s nationwide branches, which would give momentum to oust Cyril Ramaphosa as ANC president at the December 2022 national conference.
Precious has been a vocal member of the youth desk of the women’s league, dubbed “ama yanga yanga” (or the young ones), who were groomed by league president Bathabile Dlamini, a Magashule ally, to be the ANC’s future leaders.
Precious led a number a number of campaigns, including publicly calling for the arrest of former ANC spokesperson Zizi Kodwa in February 2019 after he was accused by a woman of rape at a Sandton hotel.
“We are saying that such a person like comrade Zizi cannot speak for the ANC today; he cannot be a spokesperson of a non-sexist organisation at a time when this cloud is hanging over him,” Precious Banda had said in a February 2019 interview with the SABC’s Morning Live.
After the M&G was able to verify that the NYTT members’ tip-off was correct, and that Precious’s listed identity number belonged to someone else, questions were sent to the alleged fraudster.
The questions included whether she was aware of the alleged identity fraud, and if she accepted accusations that she had duped the ANC to make it onto the NYTT.
Precious elected to not respond to the questions, and enlisted the services of her lawyer, Terrence Baloyi.
On Thursday morning, Baloyi sent the M&G a letter of demand asking for documentary proof of the allegations put to his client.
“We hereby request that you furnish us with documentary evidence and/or proof of what the said questions and allegations are based on, for our client to tender a proper response thereto. In the absence of the abovementioned [evidence], we are unable and/or the client is unable to respond to your questions,” Baloyi wrote.
“ We are pleased that you are aware of your professional ethical duty bestowed upon yourself through various statutes, rules and codes. We trust that you shall not proceed with the publishing of the article prior to compliance with the request and any deviation [from that] that may trample on our client’s right of reply; failing which, we are advised to pursue other alternative [remedies] available in law against yourself and Mail & Guardian,” he added.
Nonceba Mhlauli, who is the NYTT’s convenor, did not respond to detailed written questions that were sent to her via a messaging service. When she was elected by the ANC’s national executive committee in April to lead the NYTT, Mhlauli said the structure would ensure a “credible” youth league.
When the M&G called Ntshunxeko Thelma Banda to find out whether she knew her identity was being used by Precious, or whether she knew a Precious Banda, Ntshunxeko asked that written questions be sent to her. She did not respond to the questions.
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