ANC NEC to discuss Jacob Zuma's future in party
The ANC’s national executive committee will make a decision on the future of the party's former president, Jacob Zuma, during its meeting this weekend.
The former president has been on a campaign trail for a newly formed uMkhonto Wesizwe party, although has not officially resigned from the governing party.
The party’s highest decision-making body between conferences is meeting in Boksburg on Friday.
Speaking to the SABC, party spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri said ANC members cannot also be members of another political party.
"I believe that anything that has been said by our deployees, who were deployed by the ANC over the last weekend to address cadres assemblies and cadres forums, have spoken based on the hymn book of the ANC on this matter.
"So I will stand by everything that was said by these comrades because it is not exactly hanging someone's dirty linen in public.
"It’s a thing of reminding South Africans that here we come as the ANC, we remain intact. Anyone that goes and speaks against the ANC when they decide to belong to two parties, namely the ANC and the other party, is not in line with our the constitution of the ANC," she said.
At the same time, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula confirmed Zuma would not be attending the meeting.
"President Zuma has not been attending NEC meetings, and he is not an ex-officio member. Him and other former presidents attend the meeting as per invitation of the NEC, to honour them and their contribution.
“But ever since his incarceration, the NEC stopped inviting him.
“There is not been any change in relation to that, so we do not expect him to attend because he has not been invited for quite some time.
"Which means at some point, the NEC would have applied itself as to we then reinstate the invitation or what happens going forward, based on the outcomes of the case. He finally got parole, and he was one of the people who benefitted from the president's pardon, now before that could be concluded by us, MK happened.”
Mbalula said Friday's NEC meeting will reflect on Zuma’s attitude towards the ANC.
"We will decide on what then do we do since he has announced his position, as we all know about it.
"The ANC will continue to speak for itself across the country. That will be very clear after that discussion.”
ALSO READ:
