The Pan Africanist Congress appears to be heading for a split, as supporters of Thami ka Plaatjie call for a third national congress.
The former PAC secretary general and his supporters walked out of the Soweto congress last month just before the leadership elections were to be held.
Then PAC deputy president Motsoko Pheko was subsequently elected party president to replace Stanley Mogoba. Plaatjie’s supporters are now demanding a third congress, accusing Pheko of ”renting voters” for the leadership election.
The 2002 Umtata congress was nullified after the discovery of fraudulent activity by some of the party’s branches. The leadership election was stopped halfway because many voters were found to be underage, while others were discovered not to be
PAC members.
Spokesperson for the group supporting Plaatjie, Thabo Manamela, on Wednesday accused Pheko of bussing a Free State football club to Soweto and allowing them to vote.
”These were rented voters. They were non-PAC members and voted. He used the football club to replace the underage children.
”Pheko would stop at nothing to gain the presidency of the PAC,” he said.
Manamela said his group had sent a letter to Pheko and new secretary general Mofihli Likotsi on June 25 asking that a new congress be convened. In terms of the party’s constitution a special congress could be convened if one third of the branches represented at the last congress signed a petition requesting one.
”We have over a third of that number asking for a new congress,” he said.
Pheko was given until July 31 to respond to the letter. However, PAC spokesperson Waters Toboti denied receiving any correspondence.
”We are getting our information through the press,” he said. It was ”madness” to call a third congress.
”I am not saying there is no split but we have not had any correspondence from within the party,” he said.
Manamela said it had come to their attention that the letters requesting a new congress were being destroyed. Toboti said anybody who was unhappy within the party was free to leave.
”This is a democratic country. They are free to go.”
There would not be a third congress.
”There will not be a congress next month or next year. The next congress will only be in 2006,” Toboti said. – Sapa