Fomer Justice Minister Thembi Simelane. (Photo by Brenton Geach/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula has defended the party’s handling of allegations against the minister of human settlements Thembi Simelane, rejecting calls for her to step aside until investigations into alleged misconduct are concluded.
Speaking to the media on Friday, Mbalula said Simelane had not been formally charged or found guilty by any oversight body, including chapter 9 institutions such as the public protector.
“At the present moment, the minister is not charged and has not been found guilty by any of the institutions,” he said.
“There has not been any precedent before where a person who is not charged, but implicated, in one or two things while serving as a minister has been forced by the rule to step aside.”
Simelane is accused of receiving a R500 000 “loan” from Gundo Wealth Solutions, which facilitated unlawful investments by the Polokwane local municipality in the now-defunct VBS Mutual Bank in 2016, while she was mayor of the city.
She is also at the centre of a series of investigations by News24 after she was accused of living far beyond her means during her time as mayor of Polokwane.
Simelane has not been criminally charged but has been invited to the party’s integrity committee to explain herself after the allegations.
Mbalula said he needed to be given the integrity commission’s report on the former justice minister before he could consider what action to take.
The ANC’s step-aside rule requires members facing formal criminal charges to relinquish their positions temporarily. Mbalula said the rule only applied when formal legal action had been taken.
“Should the outcome of those processes give us any recommendation, necessary steps will be taken by the ANC,” he said.
Simelane’s continued presence in government has drawn criticism from civil society organisations and ANC members, including its veterans.
Concerns escalated following her reassignment to another ministerial department, despite allegations of irregularities.
In a statement released on Tuesday night, President Cyril Ramaphosa said he had made the changes to his executive “to ensure the effectiveness of the cabinet in delivering its mandate” in accordance with his powers in terms of section 91 (2) of the Constitution.
He made no mention of the allegations against Simelane.
Mbalula said the party had noted the criticisms of keeping her in the cabinet, saying the party was open to engaging with its veterans directly.
“We note the concerns and the disapproval of the reappointment of Minister Simelane to another department, particularly by our veterans,” he said. “We are of the view that the veterans league should have raised the matter directly with the ANC.”
This after ANC Veterans League president Snuki Zikakala on Wednesday criticised the move to redeploy Simelane, arguing that she should have been placed on special leave.
“The ANC constitution says to step down immediately when you are charged but, if your name keeps on coming up every day, it is distracting from fixing the organisation itself, which suffered severely during the 29 May elections.”
Mbalula admitted that the controversy had affected the party’s reputation.
“We note the heavy strain and impact of this matter on the organisational brand and image and the voices of civil society for her to step aside pending a full inquiry and other legal processes.”
He added that the ANC would not interfere with ongoing state investigations and expressed confidence in the independence of relevant institutions.
“We believe and trust in the ability of the independent bodies to discharge their mandate and responsibilities,” he said.