Nkandla mayor’s ascension part of Buthelezi’s succession plan?

Nkandla mayor Thamsanqa Ntuli emerged victorious after being elected chairman of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) KwaZulu-Natal branch at the IFP’s provincial conference held in Ulundi this weekend.

These events play right into the hands of IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi who reportedly wanted to use the province’s leadership position as a trade-off to stop one of the factions within in party from opposing his preferred successor.

The party’s elective conference is set to take place in August and Sunday Times reports that Buthelezi has his heart set on Velenkosini Hlabisa as his preferred successor when he steps aside after 40 years in his position as IFP leader.

The party is split between two factions; the KKK which backed Ntuli’s provincial leadership campaign and the AU which Hlabisa belongs to.

Factional battles threatened to topple Buthelezi’s plans due to a significant number of party leaders opposing his succession plan, hence his plan to make a trade-off using the provincial leadership position.

The KKK reportedly wanted Ntuli to take over leadership of the party but now that he has been elected as provincial chair, the leadership race looks set for Hlabisa to win.

However, fears that the KKK might elect another representative remain, and the success of Buthelezi’s plans will only be confirmed once August’s elective conference is over.

UPDATE: The IFP has denied that there is any discussion on the table about a rerun of the provincial conference and that it was satisfied with the outcome.

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