ANC Ekurhuleni vote a concern for Ramaphosa’s presidency bid

The final result of the ANC Ekurhuleni conference still hangs in the air, but indications are that incumbent regional chair Mzwandile Masina may clinch himself a third term.

Provisional results show Masina won 163 votes, while his rival Doctor Xhakaza got 151 votes.

However, 19 votes remain in limbo, subject to authentication of the branches which cast them… so the final say has yet to be had.

If Masina does win, it will be a significant setback for the campaign of President Cyril Ramaphosa to take the presidency of the ANC at the party’s end-of-year elective conference.

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Xhakaza is a Ramaphosa man and Masina has been orbiting the “radical economic transformation” (RET) faction loyal to former president Jacob Zuma.

Masina may position the RET group to make a play for the Gauteng provincial vote, giving it a major leg-up for the elective conference.

The talk within the ANC is that the “fence sitters” and “flip-floppers”, including acting secretary-general Paul Mashatile, are now showing their true colours in support of Zuma.

Certainly, Mashatile cannot be happy with the reality that Ramaphosa is willing to pursue legal action against those implicated in questionable dealings by the Zondo commission.

Mashatile was found by Zondo to have been paid R370,000 by businessman Edwin Sodi.

Mashatile has flitted between the two factions before and clearly his main concern is the best interests of Paul Mashatile.

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However, it is worrying that he may be wanting to avoid accountability through political wiles.

What the Ekurhuleni events do indicate is that jockeying for position is still very much the way the ANC conducts its business.

If the RET faction manages to annex Gauteng, then Ramaphosa is going to have severe headaches at the end of the year.

Yet, he is stronger now than he was in 2017 and also knows how to play the game.