The African National Congress (ANC) has applied for an urgent court interdict to stop the name — the South African National Convention — being used by the ANC breakaway movement, dissidents said on Friday.
”They are interdicting [so] that we can’t go ahead with the national convention because they say we can’t use their name,” former Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa said on Friday.
Shilowa, former ANC chairperson Mosiuoa Lekota and former deputy defence minister Mluleki George received simultaneous SMSs informing them of this, Shilowa said at a press briefing at Sandton ahead of this weekend’s convention.
However, ANC spokesperson Jessie Duarte said on Friday it was not true that the ANC wanted to stop the convention. It just objected to the name the organisers were using.
In a statement, she said: ”The ANC has lodged an urgent high court application to prevent the use of names or designations that may be confusingly similar to the name and trademark of the ANC.
”The application specifically refers to the names South Africa National Congress and/or South Africa National Convention and/or SANC.”
Duarte said the application had been brought against Shilowa, Lekota and George.
”Claims that the ANC has brought an application to prevent the holding of a national convention are untrue and completely without any basis in fact,” she said.
Remain steadfast
Meanwhile, Jacob Zuma urged ANC members on Friday to remain steadfast in the principles and traditions of the movement.
”The ANC will never stray from the culture and traditions of our movement,” he said in a newsletter on the ANC website.
”We confirm that we will continue to draw inspiration from the lessons gained from the lives of comrades Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Joe Slovo, Beyers Naude, Braam Fischer, Chris Hani, Dorothy Nyembe, Florence Mophosho, Billy Nair and many others,” Zuma said.
”In memory of these heroes of our struggle, we urge all ANC members to remain steadfast in the principles and traditions of the movement.”
Zuma said party members should not be swayed into ”negative action by the anger arising out of the new phenomenon” of some ANC members who were calling a convention to discuss the formation of a new political party.
”We wish the adventurists luck, and are pleased that many are coming out and are resigning from the ANC. We expect the convention to unmask many others who will hopefully also leave the ANC in peace without any further delay,” Zuma said.
”The ANC lives, it leads, it is strong, and it will lead this country for decades to come, depending on the will of the people as expressed in the Freedom Charter.”
The ANC remained unfazed by the occurrences of the past few weeks.
The ANC was not for the faint-hearted. If it were, it would not have had leaders of the calibre of Albert Luthuli, Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela, Zuma said. — Sapa