Sources in the SACP say they will push for Obed Bapela to become chairperson of the ANC in Gauteng.
Calls by the South African Communist Party (SACP) to hold the Gauteng's ANC elective conference earlier than planned has put the party on a collision course with sections of the provincial ANC leadership.
Matters have not been helped by the SACP's apparent intention to lobby for Obed Bapela, deputy minister in the presidency, to be the chairperson of the ANC in the province.
The provincial leadership of the SACP and the ANC held a tense five-a-side bilateral meeting on Monday this week to discuss the outcomes of the party's provincial council – held more than a week ago – where calls were also made to do away with the two centres of power in the province ahead of next year's general elections.
The SACP believes that having Nomvula Mokonyane as Gauteng premier and Paul Mashatile as ANC provincial chairperson has weakened the alliance and affected service delivery in the province.
Mokonyane played a key role in lobbying for President Jacob Zuma's victory in Mangaung, whereas Mashatile supported Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe.
Mokonyane is understood to be working behind the scenes with various alliance structures to oust Mashatile, who serves as national arts and culture minister, when the province holds its next conference.
Preferred candidate
Several sources in the SACP said they would push for Bapela to contest the position of ANC chairperson and that they will lobby Zuma to appoint him as premier because he is not part of any faction in Gauteng. Mokonyane, the preferred candidate of the top leadership of the ANC, does not enjoy grass-roots support in the province, the source said.
The SACP's Gauteng provincial secretary, Jacob Mamabolo, told the Mail & Guardian this week that, as part of preparations for next year's general elections, it was "preferable that the leader of the ANC be at the same time the leader of the state".
"It is our [preference] that in 2014 we do not have a repeat of the two centres of power in Gauteng," Mamabolo said.
"You now have the situation where [Mokonyane] is not the leader of the ANC and [Mashatile] is not in the provincial government executive. It is a political conundrum … the leader of the party should be the leader of the province, otherwise this will create another political conundrum come 2014."
An ANC Gauteng provincial executive committee (PEC) member, who did not want to be named for fear of jeopardising his career, said the SACP's call to bring the ANC provincial conference forward was important as it would deal with critical issues such as the two centres of power debate.
"It is a legitimate call. We don't want to go the Limpopo route where there's been disbandment or [the North West route] where people are killing each other. These people's hatred of President Zuma has reached alarming rates. You have a situation where the 'forces of change', continue to insult the leadership of the ANC. They want to prove that what happened in Mangaung was wrong. The SACP's intervention is right and correct. We need a new leadership in the province before 2014, otherwise Gauteng will be delivered to the Democratic Alliance on a silver platter. We have lost Cape Town and now they want us to lose Pretoria," said the member.
ANC Gauteng spokesperson Nkenke Kekana confirmed there had been a bilateral meeting between the SACP and the ANC on Monday, but declined to provide further details.
Sideshows
"The provincial conference is happening next year," he said. "Our focus at the moment is the election campaign for the 2014 general elections. We're happy with the state of the organisation in Gauteng and the next bilateral with the SACP and [trade union federation] Cosatu will discuss the preparations for the elections."
Another ANC Gauteng PEC member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the SACP should refrain from interfering in the ANC's internal affairs.
"[Gwede] Mantashe [the ANC secretary general] has warned the party not to interfere … The alliance between the ANC and the SACP is a paperless alliance, but there is a mutual respect for the two organisations.
There is also an arm's length relationship on how the party operates and how we operate as the ANC. If they don't want the two centres of power, why didn't they raise it when Mashatile was elected ANC chair? Why now? We will have the provincial [conference] next year in 2014. We are busy with the election campaign and setting up structures. We don't have time for sideshows."
Asked to comment about concerns that the SACP was interfering in the ANC's internal affairs, Mamabolo said: "You can't make the state a no-go area for the party because of vested business interests in the organs of state. We're dealing here with state power and not succession in the ANC. The attempts to use interference as an excuse is a cheap tactic to keep the party out of the state processes."