Ziwaphi Relentless quest for the truth
The African National Congress prides itself as a democratic organisation. Ziwaphi-The New Era investigation discovered that the organisation’s constitution doesn’t always apply to its blue-eyed boys.
At least, two significant occurrences in the organisation’s recent history in Mpumalanga province have even brought to question whether the organisation respects its own constitution.
In 2016, former premier and provincial chairperson, David Mabuza, promoted Mandla Msibi into the ANC’S provincial executive committee, and a month ago Cleopas Maunye into the organisation’s regional executive committee in Bohlabela.
The only way to appoint people to the structures is through democratic elections or through co-option.
While both Maunye and Msibi rose through the ranks under the guise of “co-option” as provided for in the ANC constitution, they do not meet the requirements for such promotion.
A rise within the ANC ranks translates to an automatic rise in the echelons of power. The duo now occupy positions of influence in the Mpumalanga provincial government.
Msibi is the latest MEC for co-operative governance and traditional affairs, while Maunye is the special advisor to the premier.
Now, getting responses from Mpumalanga ANC spokespersons is probably one of the most excruciating hurdles for journalists.
They are either accused of not knowing how the ANC operates, at worst, suspected of having ulterior motives.
It was no exception when Ziwaphi-The New Era requested the organisation to explain which policy it used to co-opt the duo ahead of other members.
ANC spokesperson, Sasekani Manzini, chose to “lecture” this journalist about the role of the media, research and basic literacy instead of explaining the duo’s sudden rise.
“I am of the view that the media is suppose (sic) to inform and educate the nation on a variety of issues, and for a media house to do that, it must have journalists with some basic levels of literacy and competence.
“This competence and literacy must allow the journalists to do basic research, and be able to access information which is readily available like the ANC constitution, and guidelines to elect public representatives.
“If the journalists of your media house were dilligent (sic), the questions contained in this media inquiry would not have been asked.
“Let us not undermine the important relationship between media houses and political parties by asking unnecessary questions and questions on things which are readily available to the public and some which have been explained before, like the issue of Premier Tsipane and her legitimate nomination to be an MPL and election to be Premier of the Province. The sooner the media house accepts this and moves on to other important issues of development, the better,” said Manzini.
Ziwaphi brought it to Manzini’s attention that the simple definition of “research” is a process of asking questions and finding answers, and that this was the purpose of the enquiry.
Of course, we also made her aware of the circumstances under which the ANC constitution provides for co-options, viz:
“The NEC/PEC/REC may co-opt not more than 3 (three) persons, in order to provide for a balanced representation that reflects the true character of the South African people.”
Msibi and Maunye did not meet this requirement, thus, we asked Manzini to provide the specific policy or clause in the ANC constitution that caused the duo’s cop-option.
She failed to answer, and instead resorted to the pre-democracy style approach to media relations – questioning the motive of the enquiry.
“But on your enquiry on something that happened long time ago and one would argue that why now the interest, (sic)” was all that Manzini was concerned about.
In the absence of further answers from Manzini, and any provision in the ANC constitution, we can reveal that the duo’s quick rise had nothing to do with ANC policy.
Maunye is a former secretary of the Bushbuckridge Residents Association (BRA) and member of the Mpumalanga provincial legislature.
His organisation passed a vote of no confidence in him and forced him to resign from the legislature, which he did in March 2017.
This was after Maunye allegedly entered into secret talks with Mabuza’s friend, Robert Gumede to bring BRA back into the ANC fold.
The formation of BRA was in response to allegations that the ANC in Bohlabela regions was biased against Sepulana speaking people in favour of the Tsonga people in terms of service delivery in the area.
Maunye acknowledged this in a media release following his resignation in 2017.
“ANC in Bohlabela was polarised by tribalism which made things difficult for us to comeback to ANC, in 2014 after we won a seat in the legislature we had negotiations with ANC again and it couldn’t yield positive result because tribalism was still order of the day in Bohlabela,” he said.
He also became an ardent praise singer of former Mpumalanga premier, David Mabuza.
“Throughout my tenure as an MPL in the legislature I have always advocated integrated development in Bushbuckridge, which was made possible by the intervention of Premier Mabuza, we started building schools, roads on the other side of Bushbuckridge, this have given (sic) us hope as the people of Bushbuckridge, for the first time we (saw) six schools built in one financial year on the other side of Bushbuckridge under the leadership of DD Mabuza” said Maunye, when he resigned from BRA.
Soon thereafter, Maunye became the Mabuza’s and the ANC’s blue-eyed boy.
Mabuza appointed him in a plush position of special advisor – a R70 000 per month position which was not advertised nor any interviews conducted, as it is a role-playing post.
Maunye’s then new posture, however, also earned him the ire of cultural and language activist, Goodenough Mashego.
“Often the trappings of political largesse blind elected officials to what is truly happening on the ground. Tribalism is ingrained in the DNA of the politics in Bushbuckridge and to say two years of Bushbuckridge Residents Association participation in the legislature and five in council has diminished it is disingenuous. Few facts, deployment and employment patterns in Bushbuckridge still reflect in tribal imbalance. A work place audit can be conducted anytime and it will show that there is a tribe that is advantaged than another one. Sepulane and Shangaan are languages of Bushbuckridge (but) are not designated official languages in Mpumalanga,” said Mashego at the time.
Premier’s spokesperson, Sibongile Mkani-Mpolweni, confirmed that premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane reappointed Maunye as her adviser, following Mabuza’s departure to Union Buildings to occupy the position of the country’s deputy president.
“He is advisor to the honorable premier and his primary focus area is governance,” said Mkani-Mpolweni.
Insiders within the office of the premier, however, claim that he doesn’t have a job description.
“All other advisers to the premier had clear job descriptions, but not him. He is a politician. He is more on issues of ANC politics. His work is more outside than inside. It’s about campaigns to popularise the premier because the premier is not known in the province,” said an insider who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Another blue-eyed boy of Mabuza is Mandla Msibi, who led protests which often turned violent in Pienaar township in Mbombela.
The protests forced Mabuza to make concessions to the people of Pienaar that all government projects in the township would be performed by businesses from the township.
Soon thereafter, Msibi’s red overall-clad “army” became a common feature during Mabuza’s defamation case against Mathews Phosa at the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
Ever since, Msibi’s star rose very rapidly.
Mabuza co-opted him into the ANC provincial executive committee just after the 2016 local government elections. He also became the ANC’s provincial elections co-ordinator and recently the organisation promoted him into the legislature and premier Refilwe Mtsweni appointed him as MEC for local government.
Mpumalanga ANC veteran, Charles Makola recently penned that the co-option clause in the ANC constitution is used to manipulate democratic processes.
“Co-option should be administered for specific reasons , and cannot be done willy nilly, executive structures who co-opt because thier faction did not win sufficient seats during a conference, or he or she is a key member of that faction or he or she is likely to cause problems if he /she is outside of that structure, all of these reasons are inconsistent with the constitution of the ANC, and are wrong, especially when the ANC need to continue to engage, organise,and mobilise all sectors of society in thier variety,dynamism and ever-evolving nature around our common vision of building a national democratic society,co-option must either address greater representation or the character of the ANC,” says Makola.
He also warns that co-option cannot be done outside ANC policy.
“A member must have been a member of the ANC in good standing for two (2) years to be co-opted in the branch,5 years before co-opted into the REC, 7 years before being co-opted into PEC and 10 years before being co-opted into the NEC,” he says.
Maunye was co-opted before even serving one year in the ANC, i.e. he was supposed to have served the organisation for at least another six years before being eligible for co-option.
Msibi and Maunye are not the only people whose rise within the ranks of the ANC cannot be explained in terms of any policy.
In 1999, the organisation promoted Ndaweni Mahlangu from the back benches of national parliament into the position of premiership.
Thereafter he “contested” and “won” the position of ANC provincial chairperson. Then president Thabo Mbeki defended the often erratic Mahlangu, turning him into the first known blue-eyed boy of the ANC in Mpumalanga.
Thabang Makwetla replaced Mahlangu as the ANC’s blue-eyed boy, when Mbeki appointed him as the premier. Makwetla also used his position to be the provincial chairperson, albeit with the help of Mabuza.
In 2016, rising Economic Freedom Fighters’ Ayanda Tshabalala also found her way into the provincial office of the governing ANC, after she had resigned, citing sexual harassment within the EFF. She did not, however, disclose the alleged perpetrators.
