Johannesburg – “Nomvula (Mokonyane) once raised the point that we are weak as the NEC. Perhaps today she was vindicated.”
This was the sentiment of ANC national executive committee (NEC) member Tandi Mahambehlala, when she was asked if the people leading the ANC are dividing the party.
She was speaking to the public broadcaster after the adjournment of the special NEC meeting at Nasrec, south of Johannesburg on Friday, to discuss the report by the independent panel established in terms of Section 89 of the Constitution to determine if President Cyril Ramaphosa has a case to answer in the Phala Phala matter.
The meeting was adjourned by ANC treasurer-general and acting secretary-general Paul Mashatile, because the report by the panel first needed go to the national working committee (NWC).
He also announced that Ramaphosa wasn’t attending the meeting because he was in Cape Town busy consulting over his options.
Mahambehlala told the SABC that there are processes and procedures that the organisation is following.
“Before a report comes to the NEC, it is supposed to be processed by the officials. From the officials, it goes to the national working committee, which then comes to the NEC. But this particular report came to the NEC without those steps, and we are where we are today,” Mahambehlala said.
When asked what will happen next Tuesday when the matter is deliberated over in Parliament, if the matter isn’t finalised, she said the ANC was on the horns of a dilemma.
“We in a dilemma. We are hoping that the leadership will prevail, come to Parliament and give us marching orders on this issue. But I don’t know how because we have not deliberated on the report ourselves as the NEC,” Mahambehlala said.
“As for parliamentarians, we are hoping that they will get marching orders from them as the norm. If that does not happen, we don’t know what will transpire on Tuesday because this meeting was supposed to also give a guide to what should happen and what members of parliament should do in any event where there’s a division.”
The Star