Comrade Zizi Kodwa and Comrade Dakota Legoete (Twitter: ANC)
The African National Congress has finalised its list of around 200 members to be sent to Parliament after the 2019 general elections, who will now be subject to further vetting.
ANC North West official Dakota Legoete and acting national spokesperson Zizi Kodwa on Sunday announced the outcomes of the party’s list conference following a two-day meeting in Durban.
The party announced that more than 800 names had been debated and discussed. The top 25 names will go into a “safe zone”.
Kodwa said the party was not in a position to mention any names yet, not even a “top 10”.
“The number on the list means nothing at the moment. You can only be on the safe zone if the ANC wins the elections,” Kodwa said in answer to questions.
Further vetting will now take place by the party’s national executive committee of the members who made the cut.
“We are not at the stage where we have dealt with vetting. There is [also] another stage where each candidate must either accept or decline,” Legoete said.
That includes members like former president Jacob Zuma, Legoete said in answer to a question.
Zuma had made a provisional list at number 74 going into the conference.
Criteria
Kodwa said the key point was that those 200 were “chosen” by the party; they had not chosen themselves and serve on behalf of the party.
The conference confirmed that the candidates must be elected in terms of certain guidelines.
They must:
- enhance the reputation of the ANC,
- be a member of the party in good standing,
- have experience, education or expertise to create constructive input in Parliament.
- have no criminal record after 1996 that resulted in a sentence of 12 months or more, without an option to pay a fine.
Every second name must be a woman, while every third name must be a member with specialised skills to offer in their field.
The final list of names will be given to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) before the elections in May. — News 24
The article has been amended to reflect updates from the news agency.