Disciplinary action will be taken against any ANC leaders who engage in public spats, trade insults or launch personal attacks, party secretary general Gwede Mantashe said on Sunday.
“The NEC [national executive committee] noted with astonishment the disrespect shown by some leaders and structures of our movement to the decisions of the national executive committee, particularly relating to the succession debate to our 2012 national conference,” Mantashe told a media briefing in Johannesburg, following a two-day meeting of the ruling party’s leadership.
“The NEC took exception to the new culture of public spats, trading of insults and personalised attacks amongst its leaders. This action detracts from the historic mission of the ANC, its discipline, traditions and protocols.”
Mantashe said the practice was “alien” to the ANC and needed to be “nipped in the bud”. He said it could be caused by these members’ lack of “political understanding”.
“What is alien to the culture of the ANC is the ease with which people stand up on podiums and attack each other. That is new and we think that it reflects maybe a lack of experience, lack of political understanding, lack of appreciating the impact of that on the movement itself and on the individual that you attack.”
Stern warning
The party’s leadership has issued a “stern warning” to stop attacks on party leaders and government ministers in public.
This week the ANC Youth League expressed its displeasure in Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, feeling he wasn’t following party policies and ignoring the plight of the youth.
On Sunday Mantashe expressed the ANC’s confidence in Gordhan.
“[The] attack on the minister of finance is not an exception … confidence in the minister of finance has actually grown after delivering the budget … there is no questions about comrade Pravin being incompetent.”
The party’s stance extended to relations with its alliance partners.
Bilateral talks
Recent verbal sparring between Cosatu and the party resulted in the union federation’s general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi being publicly vilified by ANC Youth League president Julius Malema.
The ANC and Cosatu would meet in bilateral talks to be organised “urgently”, Mantashe said. An alliance summit scheduled for April would be moved to June to make way for further bilateral talks.
Talks were held between the ANC and the SA Communist Party last week. It focused on the booing of ANC leaders at a SACP conference in December last year.
Mantashe reiterated the ANC’s position on lifestyle audits, saying the SA Revenue Service was responsible for conducting these.
“There can be no instruments specifically designed for ANC leaders and public representatives to the exclusion of leaders of all formations in society, including opposition parties and the private sector.”
Cosatu has repeatedly called for lifestyle audits. Both President Jacob Zuma and his deputy Kgalema Motlanthe however have said there was no need for them.
Mantashe said tools used in the fight against corruption must never be used “selectively”, as this could degenerate into “using state interests for factional interests”. Tools already in the hands of the state had to be used responsibly.
Mantashe said it was necessary to be “decisive” against using the tender system to give business to individuals “in ways that create the perception that there’s favouritism or corruption in the process”.
“You can’t because of a problem around a particular tender throw away the whole system. Society must play its role, society has a responsibility of raising its objections to these things … but nobody must get business opportunities by favouritism or corruption.”
Malema has been in the spotlight in recent weeks for tenders given to a company reportedly under his directorship. – Sapa