Allegations of voting irregularities at the Western Cape conference of the African National Congress refuse to die down as the ousting of Premier Ebrahim Rasool continues to divide the party’s provincial structures.
Competing lists of voting delegates at the Western Cape ANC conference appear to have created scope for election irregularities, possibly contributing to the defeat of Rasool and his allies in the race for posts on the provincial executive committee (PEC).
After months of acrimonious tension within the party and robust grassroots lobbying, the Africanist camp around the re-elected secretary, Mcebisi Skwatsha, obtained a white-wash in the leadership posts and an unassailable majority in the PEC.
Rasool lost the post of chairperson to MP James Ngculu by 15 votes and scraped in at last place as the 20th additional PEC member. The province has effectively thumbed its nose at the party’s head office, which had publicly stated that it preferred continuity in the leadership.
ANC secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe is still awaiting the formal conference report. Action on vote-rigging claims is unlikely. Despite disputes over the votes — 527 delegates were expected, but 537 votes were cast — the ballots were counted and the result was accepted by Rasool, while the floor dismissed the claims.
The 10 votes would not have been enough to alter the outcome of the vote, and the newly-elected leadership has dismissed claims of irregularity. ”We are treating this as nonsense,” said Ngculu. ”People must respect there’s an elected ANC leadership in the province which must be given the opportunity to play its role.”
Others close to Ngculu and Skwatsha say the question of which branches would send which delegates was resolved by the previous provincial executive under Rasool’s chairpersonship, and that it was always accepted that some additional delegates might need to be registered.
The current leadership has dismissed claims that discussions are already under way of a provincial cabinet reshuffle to reflect the election results of the conference. However, the party is well placed to exert its influence, as Ebrahim is premier without political authority and is isolated in the provincial government. Of the four ANC provincial ministers sympathetic to him, only one remains on the provincial party structure.
Meanwhile, reports Rapule Tabane, the Free State provincial ANC conference is likely to be dominated by efforts to remove current chairperson Ace Magashule and elevate Casca Mokitlane, Beatrice Marshoff’s confidant, to the leadership of the organisation.
However, Mokitlane and Marshoff appear set to be disappointed in a province where support and loyalty for Magashule run deep and are unlikely to be affected by any national ANC office preferences.
In the Free State, supporters of Magashule have never got over the fact that Mbeki has consistently refused to appoint him premier, despite him being nominated twice, in 1999 and 2004.
Magashule will be strongly challenged by Mokitlane, who is a former close confidant, but who recently fell out with him when Marshoff divided them by firing Magashule and appointing Mokitlane to her provincial cabinet.
The Mokitlane camp is banking on support from the ANC Youth League and the Xhariep and part of the Thabo Mofutsanyana regions. But Magashule’s supporters say the youth league does not have sufficient voting delegates to pose a threat.
ANC provincial spokesperson Qondile Khedama said: ”People are allowed to lobby as long as they act in accordance with the discipline of the movement.”