Durban - ANC National Executive Committee member Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma says the ANC presidency race is far from over, adding that she was still optimistic about her chances of leading the party.
Speaking to Alex Mthiyane on Gagasi FM Radio last night, Dlamini Zuma expressed optimism about her prospects of emerging victorious at the December conference.
She insisted that the results announced by the ANC electoral committee were simply from nominations by branches and not delegates. The committee announced that incumbent president Cyril Ramaphosa and former health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize will contest the position of party president.
“Branches take instructions from leadership, but at conference it is the delegates that decide who to elect. That is why one is optimistic about the chances of leading the ANC,” said Dlamini Zuma.
She also dismissed suggestions of throwing her weight behind either of the two leading candidates.
Dlamini Zuma’s optimism was also shared by the General Sihle Mbongwa Branch of the ANC in eThekwini Region, which told The Mercury that it was unfazed by her failure to feature on the list of nominees for the top six positions announced on Tuesday.
The branch is in ward 32 of eThekwini and is made up of central Durban, Albert Park and surrounding areas. Its members have vowed to fight until the end to ensure that their candidate emerges as the winner.
Dlamini Zuma’s failure to make the list has political observers saying the race for the presidency is only between Ramaphosa and Mkhize.
But Dlamini Zuma’s branch has poured cold water on this, with members vowing to lobby for her in the coming days.
“One must admit that the list announced was quite disappointing, but in saying that it is also important to point out that this was merely the outcome of a nomination process and not voting,” said a branch member, who asked not to be named.
He also expressed reservation over the male-dominated list, arguing that this was in contrast with the ANC’s guidelines.
“The outcome simply means that we will have to continue with the groundwork and lobby until voting day. It is not going to be an easy process, but it has been done before.”
This means that the lobby group would continue to try and convince other delegates on Dlamini Zuma’s suitability to lead the ruling party, paving the way for her to be nominated from the floor during the conference to contest for the top job.
According to the branch member, such a move was not new, pointing to how Malusi Gigaba got nominated from the floor and went on to become the president of the ANC Youth League in 1996.
Meanwhile, former ANC Women’s League president Bathabile Dlamini has lamented the male-dominated nominees’ list for the top six positions.
She vowed to work tirelessly with her comrades to ensure that at least two women make it into the top six positions, saying there was still time to recover lost ground ahead of the crucial conference.
Speaking to The Mercury yesterday, Dlamini said they would work at ensuring that female candidates got nominated from the floor during the conference.
“The disappointing part is that as women, we are the majority in the ANC, and yet there are prevailing attitudes that we should always be led by men. This is another demonstration of how patriarchy continues to dominate in the ANC, and it is important for party members to introspect on how we got here,” said Dlamini.