ANC eThekhwini conference finally starts after delays

The ANC eThekwini regional conference got off hours later on Saturday as the party tried to work out who from the regional ANCYL and the ANCWL should have the voting status.

Provincial party spokesman Nhlakanipho Ntombela said it was eventually decided that three representatives each from the ANCYL at national, provincial and the region discuss and agree on the delegation to represent the youth league at the conference.

“Collectively, we are doubling our efforts to deal with any perception of factionalised registration processes and activities associated with cleaning up of credentials.

“We are fully aware that any floppiness and mistake has a potential of dividing the organization during the most important period in our history,” Ntombela said.

ALSO READ: Questions over Zandile Gumede’s nomination as ANC eThekwini conference gets underway

The delegates were addressed by provincial chairperson and Premier Sihle Zikalala before moving into a closed session.

The battle for the control of the country’s biggest ANC region is between corruption-accused Zandile Gumede and eThekhwini council speaker Thabani Nyawose.

eThekwini is the biggest region in the country in terms of membership and branches. It has 111 branches and over 50,000 members.

READ MORE: Zandile Gumede and co-accused’s corruption trial to start in July

Gumede, who is a former eThekhwini mayor, is aligned to the RET (radical economic transformation) while Nyawose is supported by Zikalala.

Gumede allegedly directly or indirectly received R2.8 million in kickbacks from service providers who won the irregular DSW tender awarded in 2017.

The payments all took place while Gumede was still the mayor, and were not disclosed to the municipality as required by law.

She is also accused of using her political status to influence the appointment of senior eThekwini personnel responsible for supply-chain management, as well as legal matters and human resources.

The outcome of the contestation between Gumede and Nyawose will set the tone for the upcoming provincial conference.

According to Ntombela, there were 13 voting ANCWL delegates at the conference representing the region.

NOW READ: ANC eThekwini regional conference delayed by youth league hiccup