Two fiery young leaders could join forces to challenge the old guard of the Pan Africanist Congress, especially the rule of president Stanley Mogoba and deputy president Motsoko Pheko.
Mogoba has been president of the PAC since 1996.
Representatives of Maxwell Nema-dzivhanani, the Limpopo chairperson, and Thami ka Plaatjie, national secretary general, have been holding talks about how the two can work together to create a younger and stronger PAC leadership that can present an alternative to the African National Congress in the 2004 election.
Nemadzivhanani will stand as president and Ka Plaatjie as deputy president and, together with their campaigners, will support each other, says Jabhi Ligege, who is leading Nemadziv-hanani’s election campaign.
The Young Turks promise to modernise the party. They are seen to be more responsive to current political sentiments than to the founding policies of the 1950s that Mogoba’s generation is wedded to.
At a caucus held last weekend in Bloemfontein some PAC members decided that Ka Plaatjie should make way for Nemadzivhanani as president and instead campaign for the deputy presidency at the party’s congress in December.
The meeting was part of a string of caucuses being held around the country to solidify Nemadzivhanani’s support, said Ligege.
“Thami should become the party’s deputy president. He is not ready to take up leadership,” he said.
Ligege said Nemadzivhanani’s main competitor was Pheko.
Nemadzivhanani lost to Mogoba at the last congress in 2000. He says he is ready to be president of the party.
Most observers had expected Ka Plaatjie, the PAC’s most visible leader, to mount the main challenge for the presidency.
“We are confident that we have the support we need to win the elections in December,” Nemadzivhanani said.
Ka Plaatjie said he had been approached by members to stand as president.
“I haven’t taken a final position. The important thing now is to unite the PAC and we want to avoid a winner-takes-all situation. We think that there is room for Mogoba and Nemadzivhanani; there’s room for every candidate. Congress will decide who they want as the president,” he said.
Mogoba confirmed that he would stand as president at the congress, which will be held at the University of the Transkei in December. He said he was concerned about division in the party and the national executive council would have to hold a meeting to discuss the problem.
“I will be willing to stand for president only if I am asked to at congress.”
If he was not elected president he would rather not serve on the national executive council, he said.
Pheko, who carries enough support to be a threat to Nemadzivhanani, was reluctant to reveal whether he would be standing for president. He said he would make his position known at congress.
The camps are embarking on aggressive recruitment drives.
The Mail & Guardian was told that the PAC received R30 000 in membership fees from a top official, who had recruited 3 000 new members. Another official is reported to have paid fees for 700 new members.
“I haven’t looked at the statements recently, but I don’t believe that these allegations are true,” said Themba Godi, the party’s national organiser.
Mofihli Likoti, the PAC’s secretary for labour, confirmed that the party was growing “very fast”.