Ramaphosa ‘hardliners’ want Ace and others booted before elections – report

The New Age reported on Friday that ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa is facing pressure to take a harder line against party leaders who have been implicated in allegations of state capture.

Their report named party secretary-general Ace Magashule, North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo and various Cabinet members as potentially on the wrong side of a factional rift that Ramaphosa has been working hard to paper over since his election in December.

The paper reports that the upcoming national executive committee (NEC) of the ANC would be dominated by a push from Ramaphosa’s strongest backers to purge the party of more of those who have faced graft allegations as they are allegedly concerned that the continued presence of these individuals in the party will prove to be an obstacle ahead of a decisive victory in the 2019 elections.

Failing this, “the hardliners are expected to set the ball rolling for a national general council to be convened in July”, which would presumably work to take steps against “captured” officials.

However, the paper’s sources claimed Ramaphosa would oppose this, as such a move would threaten the fragile “unity” process that has been playing out since the ANC’s December elective conference. Ramaphosa only won the presidency by a small margin and stands the risk of having numerous ANC branches turning against him if there is a purge.

The NEC meets from today until Sunday in Cape Town.

According to the report, Magashule is running a “parallel administration” with different aims to those demanded by Ramaphosa’s office.

The report suggests that anti-graft hardliners in the ANC hope to see Magashule arrested for, among other things, his role in the Gupta-linked Estina dairy farm scandal; failing that he may be forced to step aside in some other way so that he can be replaced by Senzo Mchunu.

ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe and other high-ranking officials dismissed the report as mere speculation.

Mabe said Mchune and Magashule had been working together well at Luthuli House, while Magashule supporters also dismissed thoughts of the secretary-general and others’ removal as wishful thinking.