ANC admits it owes ‘War Room’ PR expert hundreds of thousands

The African National Congress (ANC) has admitted in court papers that public relations expert Sihle Bolani was part of the party’s campaign team during last year’s municipal elections.

However, the party’s general manager Ignatius Jacobs in an affidavit filed on Tuesday, on behalf of the ANC, said it doesn’t owe the businesswoman money as it was agreed that she would volunteer her services for its campaign.

“[Bolani] undertook to volunteer her services and be part of the campaign team, together with other volunteers, to roll out the elections marketing strategy of the [ANC] in preparation for the local government elections on 3 August 2016.

Jacobs said it become apparent to him during a meeting with the businesswoman on December 9 that she misunderstood she was expected to volunteer her services for the campaign.

“On 1 November 2016‚ [Bolani] submitted an invoice in the sum of R2‚304‚000.00. The [ANC] and I disputed this invoice on the grounds that there was no agreement that [Bolani] would charge a fee for services for rendered for the said amount‚”

Jacobs however undertook to pay Bolani R1 million by the end of December but said it would not be possible to raise and pay the full amount by December 31.

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Earlier this month she was paid R100‚000 with the party acceding that the balance of R900‚000 was still outstanding.

Bolani earlier in the day had applied for an urgent court order at the Johannesburg High Court claiming that the governing party owed her company, Sihle Bolani Communications, R2.2-million for the services it rendered to it before the polls.

Her case has exposed allegations that the ANC plotted to “disempower” the election campaigns of the DA and EFF by apparently using fake posters and influencers on social media through a covert Media Advisory Team (initially known as War Room)  that would not be linked to Luthuli House.

AmaBhungane reported on Tuesday that Bolani claims that she signed a R1 million settlement agreement with Jacobs early December, but now she is demanding the full amount as she has still not been paid.

Bolani’s urgent application was struck from the court roll with costs after Judge Leonie Windell ruled that the case lacked urgency.

The ANC has denied the allegations and dismissed them as “based on malicious falsehoods and gossip.”