As NEC meets to plan for polls, Zuma’s ANC membership will be a hot topic

The ANC is expected to discuss its former president Jacob Zuma’s departure from the ANC at the weekend’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, as he has not been officially expelled from the organisation.

Speaking to the the media on Friday ahead of the NEC meeting ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula explained that Zuma was removed as an ex-officio member of the highest decision-making body after he was sentenced for ignoring a court order to testify at the state capture inquiry. 

“President Zuma has not been attending meetings of the NEC and is not an ex-officio member as per the constitution of the ANC. Him and other presidents attend meetings as per invitation of the NEC, to honour their contribution. Since he was incarcerated the NEC then stopped inviting him to the NEC.

“There has been no change in relation to that and we were talking about reinstatement. Based on the outcome of the case and that he had parole, before that could be concluded by us, then the MK party happened. So from the posture president Zuma had taken politically and his attitude towards the ANC, that is a subject that I will reflect on today and pronounce on,” he reiterated on the sidelines of the meeting at the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre. 

Daily Maverick understands that the party’s National Working Committee this week discussed the entry of new political parties on to the scene which could pose a threat to the ANC in the upcoming elections. 

This brought to the fore Zuma’s uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party and how it will affect the political landscape, especially in KwaZulu-Natal.

The matter of Zuma’s possible expulsion was also put on the table, although there was no outright decision on which direction the party should take. 

Previously, Mbalula said the organisation’s constitution does not allow members to campaign for other parties, and by doing so the former president had already “expelled himself” from the governing party.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Zuma will have to be kicked out of the ANC, but the disciplinary process will matter too

Rule 25 of the ANC’s constitution categorises Zuma’s decision to join another political party as misconduct, which could lead to the ANC instituting disciplinary proceedings. 

However, the party’s decision to not officially boot out its former president may leave the door open for his return. Zuma has said that while he will campaign for the MK party, he remains a member of the ANC. 

The ANC’s national chairperson, Gwede Mantashe, recently told Radio 702 that the party would deal with the Zuma issue after the elections, as doing so now would distract the party.

The former president has been denounced by senior party members including Mbalula; the head of the party’s presidency, Sibongile Besani; and the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, which once held him in high regard. 

Read more in Daily Maverick: KZN ANC says Zuma has ‘freed’ the party and warns members with MK links

The province had intended to make him the face of its election campaign and had fiercely backed him. 

The ANC says it is taking legal action against the MK party for using the name of its apartheid-era armed wing, and the families of deceased military veterans recently barred the party from visiting their graves. 

The party’s NEC is on tenterhooks ahead of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling - at 2pm on Friday - on whether it will grant the SA provisional measures against Israel to stop its alleged genocide in Gaza. 

Mbalula believes any outcome will be a win for the ANC.

“The most important thing that will happen today is the ICJ which will happen today at 2pm, so we will also as the NEC watch that judgment and immediately we will then make our public statement which will be made by the president of the African National Congress. 

“To us, whether the outcome is positive or negative, I think we have made our point as a country we stand for justice and humanity stands with us. We stand for self-determination and we are against genocide and this has been taken up to the highest court in the world. Many countries have been in agreement with South Africa. If the courts agree with us, that will be a plus and will be celebrated especially by the people of Palestine,” he said.

The NEC sits from Friday, 26 January, to Sunday, 28 January. The meeting will be followed by a national lekgotla on 28-29 January, where the party will discuss its plan of action for the year ahead.

The party’s manifesto will be launched in Durban on 24 February. DM