/ 26 January 2011

ANC denies offering former IFP chairperson a job

Anc Denies Offering Former Ifp Chairperson A Job

The African National Congress (ANC) has denied rumours that it had offered former Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) chairperson Zanele Magwaza-Msibi a job.

Neither did the ruling party mobilise KwaZulu-Natal youth to destabilise the opposition party’s strongholds, they maintained.

A “faceless” letter with these claims was a hoax, the ANC said in a statement on Tuesday evening.

“The ANC dismisses with the strongest contempt any allegation contained in a hoax letter, from some faceless quarters, who have come up with a political concoction claiming that the departure of former Inkatha Freedom Party leader Zanele Magwaza-Msibi is as a result of ANC involvement,” spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said.

Mthembu said the ANC and the IFP should do their “utmost best to unmask the originators” of the letter and find out their intentions.

“At no stage did the national executive committee [NEC] of the ANC ever discuss the recruitment of Mrs Magwaza-Msibi and her followers to its ranks.

“At no stage did the NEC of the ANC ever offer Mrs Magwaza-Msibi an MEC [provincial minister] position in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. At no stage did the NEC of the ANC give any support to Mrs Magwaza-Msibi to address her problems within her party, the IFP.”

‘Non-credible hoax letter’
He said the ANC Youth League (ANCYL) did not “mobilise the youth to destabilise” strongholds of the IFP through propaganda mechanisms.

“All these allegations contained in this hoax letter were never ever discussed in any ANC or ANCYL structure at national or provincial level.

“It is very distressing and disingenuous of the IFP leadership, while knowing very well the reasons for Mrs Magwaza-Msibi’s departure from their ranks, to then put the blame on the ANC, on the basis of a non-credible hoax letter,” Mthembu said.

Magwaza-Msibi announced on Tuesday that she had cut all ties with the IFP to form a breakaway party, the National Freedom Party.

The organisation, already registered with the Independent Electoral Commission, was expected to be launched on February 12, and aimed to take the Zululand district municipality from the IFP during the elections.

Magwaza-Msibi was Zululand district municipality mayor before she had a fallout with the IFP.

A court attempt by her to force the IFP to hold an elective conference, as well as to prevent it from taking her to a disciplinary enquiry, failed this week. — Sapa