ANC vs ANC in #OccupyLuthuliHouse

The #OccupyLuthuliHouse movement supporters left Beyers Naudé Square after African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Gwede Mantashe received their memorandum, despite attempts to prevent him from doing so by the uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA), the military arm of the ANC during apartheid.

One of the organisers, Gugu Ndima, previously said in a statement that they would make their way to Luthuli House to present their demands.

These demands, that asked for the resignation of ANC President Jacob Zuma and his party’s National Executive Committee, were made by disgruntled members of the ANC who ‘refuse to stand silently in [their] corners and watch this erosion [of the ANC] unfold. We refuse to be intimidated and, if needs be, will die to save the ANC’.

In light of these statements, the ANC’s headquarters were manned by a strong police presence and defended by ANC supporters on Monday morning.

The #OccupyLuthuliHouse organisers said they requested their supporters to stay at home due to the threat of violence. “We have come to Luthuli House peacefully and want to request the ANC leadership to resign because they failed to hold the president accountable and that cost us in the local government elections,” one of the organisers, Sasa Manganye told News24.

The movement requested:

•  That the ANC immediately recall President Jacob Zuma as President of South Africa
•  That NEC members follow suit and resign
•  That stalwarts of the ANC take them into a consultative conference by December 2016
•  The immediate implementation of conference resolutions which will revive the ANC
•  Disbanding the fees commission as it undermines conference resolutions.

While addressing the Zuma supporters outside the party’s headquarters, Mantashe said they were engaging the branches through the necessary channels. He called on Zuma’s supporters not to give hooligans free airtime. “We have gone to the regions and we will continue. If the ANC wants a single voice it will move in one direction,” he said.

Initially, scuffles ensued between MKMVA members and the #OccupyLuthuliHouse protesters. This occurred as the veteran members tried to prevent the general secretary from accepting the memorandum, citing that Luthuli House was not a spaza shop and the protesters should follow the right procedures.

Meanwhile, the ANCYL, MKMVA, and Congress of South African Students (Cosas) members sang struggle songs. They indicated that they wouldn’t leave the ANC headquarters as the #OccupyLuthuliHouse movement might return and cause disruptions.

MKMVA chairperson Kebby Maphatsoe thanked the supporters who came out in numbers to protect Luthuli House. He berated some of the ANC stalwarts, including Mathews Phosa and Kgalema Motlanthe, for failing to accept the Mangaung Conference outcome and results.

Cosas secretary, Khulekani Sikosana said they will continue to defend the movement and welcomed any protesters who would want to challenge them. “They can decide on the venue but we will be ready for them,” he said to huge applause from the crowd.

“We are students who believe in academic excellence and the current leadership of this country.”

He said there were about 12 million students who were willing to stand up for Zuma. “[Zuma] will rule until his term is finished. Nobody is going to prevent that,” he concluded.