Servant leader: Oscar Mabuyane says he has done all he can for the
Eastern Cape. Photo: Oupa Nkosi
The ANC’s Eastern Cape leaders are crying foul and claiming a manipulation of processes after party chairperson and premier Oscar Mabuyane’s name appeared in fifth place on the ANC’s provincial elections list.
The Mail & Guardian has reliably learnt that the first name of the province’s preliminary list is that of Eastern Cape ANC Women’s League chair Ntandokazi Capa. Second on the list is education MEC Fundile Gade, followed by social development MEC Bukiwe Fanta, with deputy provincial chairperson Mlungisi Mvoko coming in fourth.
Two provincial executive committee (PEC) members and a regional leader said they suspected foul play after Mabuyane’s name appeared fifth on the list. The insiders said manipulation of lists had been identified in the Amathole and Nelson Mandela Bay regions, where provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi enjoys support.
One provincial leader claimed that Mabuyane had originally appeared third on the list but this changed at Calata House, the ANC’s provincial headquarters. They added that branches supporting Mabuyane had already congregated at the provincial offices, demanding their election packages and challenging the preliminary list.
Responding to the M&G, Ngcukayitobi said, “The ANC will publish lists including giving an outline on issues of the premierships.”
Mabuyane could be in danger of losing his position at the legislature. Tensions between him and Ngcukayitobi were first reported earlier this year when the two leaders’ camps disagreed on who should lead the ANC Youth League in the province.
Ngcukayitobi, who is from the Eastern Cape’s biggest region of OR Tambo, and Mabuyane, whose home region is Chris Hani, have been in a power struggle for control of the ANC in the province.
Those from the OR Tambo region, including national executive committee member Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, were said to be aligned with secretary general Fikile Mbalula during the weeks leading to the youth league conference.
“There has been tension between the leadership in OR Tambo and Chris Hani. They believe that the Chris Hani region has too much power and influence. I don’t think this list issue will end up with the chairperson [Mabuyane] not forming part of the top three names recommended to nationals for consideration. I think it’s more to embarrass him,” a party insider said.
The insider added that they believe Ngcukayitobi had instructed his allies in the Amathole and Nelson Mandela Bay regions to rig the list and that an extended PEC meeting would probably deal with the matter.
Another provincial leader said that although the matter had not yet been reported to the electoral committee, there would be an investigation into the list process in the province.
“There are those who are not in the 10% like Mabuyane who will be thrown down the electable threshold because of the manipulation. What they are doing is out of desperation. There is a clear reversal of the renewal. There are those who think they are in control. When you manipulate the process it doesn’t mean you are in charge. You are anti-renewal and abusing the office you have,” they said.
“These people who are doing this manipulation will not survive. We have heard of a certain BnB in Amathole region, which was the operating room for this manipulation of the list. We hear that certain individuals in the regional office completely removed individuals from the list. There are some who are busy trying to isolate the Chris Hani region.”
The provincial leader added that this would be a problem in the Eastern Cape, which could affect the unity programme.
Mabuyane is one of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s strongest provincial allies. The Eastern Cape was Ramaphosa’s stronghold, lobbying for his election in both the 2017 and 2022 ANC elective conferences at Nasrec.
In a previous interview with the M&G, electoral committee secretary Chief Livhuwani Matsila said the body was confident that it had run a tighter ship this time, adding that provincial secretaries could not manipulate processes
“The PEC can’t just produce raw lists and submit them because that is not their function and rules don’t allow for such occurrences,” Matsila said.
“The PEC is made up of people who are inherently conflicted because, in the majority they either want to go to the legislature or parliament. So, they can’t be the same people who decide on disputes and also order a forensic audit on the process.
“It’s not their purview; it’s outside their mandate completely. The only structure that can say there must be audits is the electoral committee.”