The African National Congress (ANC) provincial executive committee in the Free State on Monday dismissed a failed court challenge to its leadership as ”counter-revolutionary”.
”The matter referred to the court has never been a legal matter but has always been a political matter,” said Free State ANC deputy chairperson Pat Matosa after the provincial executive held an urgent meeting to discuss failed a court application brought against its leaders.
”It is clearly a counter-revolutionary agenda, which is to take over the ANC and divert its agenda of reconstruction and development,” said Matosa.
The meeting was sparked off by the Bloemfontein High Court’s decision earlier on Monday to strike from the court roll an urgent application to stop the Free State regional conferences of the ANC.
Judge A Kruger was not satisfied that the urgency of the matter was proved and said it was ”self created” by the applicants.
The 10 applicants were ordered to pay their costs as well as those of the first and second respondent, provincial ANC chairperson Ace Magashule and provincial secretary Charlotte Lobe.
The applicants had earlier been awarded an interim interdict that put a hold on all decisions taken at the party’s Fezile Dabi regional conference in February.
Matosa claimed that most of the applicants were unemployed and accused them of being a ”front” for others who wanted to oppose the ANC.
”These people calling themselves members of the ANC are supposed to know that there are channels in the movement to further their grievances,” said Matosa.
Matosa said this ”counter-revolutionary” strategy had been used in the Free State before and warned it could spread to other areas, with the Free State being used as a ”coordinating revolutionary centre” due to its geographically central position.
He said the matter had ”matured to highly dangerous levels”.
The provincial executive has decided to visit all 297 ANC branches in the Free State to brief them on the court action and warn them, ”so that all members of the alliance partners must realise the real dangerous counter-revolutionary agenda that we see in the province”, said Matosa. — Sapa