Andy Duffy
The African National Congress is engaged in frantic lobbying among its Western Cape branches to ensure that Ebrahim Rasool is the only contender to succeed Dullah Omar as the party’s provincial leader.
Nominations for the post are open until April 13, but insiders are already spinning the line that
Rasool, the provincial caucus leader, is a sure bet. Six of the party’s eight Western Cape regions are believed to be firmly behind him.
The two other contenders, ANC MP Tony Yengeni and South Africa’s ambassador to the United States, Franklin Sonn, are apparently out of the running. Unconfirmed reports suggest Sonn, who was in Cape Town last week for Bill Clinton’s visit, told Rasool he could announce he would not stand, at a time that would maximise impact in Rasool’s favour.
Omar’s successor, and other positions, will be voted through at the ANC’s provincial congress on April 18 and 19. The party’s show of unity ahead of the vote is partly driven by its intense desire to avoid the sort of divisive leadership race that wracked Gauteng after Tokyo Sexwale stepped down as premier.
Deputy President Thabo Mbeki, who addressed the party’s provincial executive committee in Cape Town last week, was particularly strong on this point. “He doesn’t want a destructive leadership battle,” says provincial secrectary James Ngculu.
The ANC also believes a consensual approach will look even better if the National Party, which controls the province, tears itself apart once Premier Hernus Kriel announces his departure as provincial NP leader.
Rasool lost out to Omar in the race to succeed Chris Nissen as provincial leader in 1996. His credentials include a long stint in the provincial Cabinet where, as health and social services MEC, he pushed through reforms despite harsh budget cuts and Kriel’s political opposition. The ANC’s eviction from Kriel’s Cabinet earlier this year did little to dampen Rasool’s appeal to party members.
Rasool was not available for comment this week. Sonn also was unavailable to confirm whether he had thrown his weight behind his rival.
Yengeni says he has not discussed the issue with any branch, nor with the party’s national executive committee. He does, however, have at least one proponent: the ANC Youth League.
League chair Justin Deallende says Yengeni’s national profile should qualify him for the provincial leadership role. Rasool’s name was also mentioned as a possibility.