ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe said on Tuesday that the ruling party’s national executive committee (NEC) did not accept the call for President Jacob Zuma to step down as the party’s president.
Mantashe was speaking at Luthuli house during the ANC’s media briefing on the outcomes of the NEC meeting which was held in Irene, outside Tshwane, at the weekend and ended on Monday.
The City Press newspaper reported on Sunday that Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom tabled a motion for the president to step down in the ANC NEC meeting on Saturday.
“The NEC did not support the call for the president to step down,” Mantashe said.
“This issue was debated openly, robustly and, as we said, sometimes it was very difficult for members themselves.”