Suspended ANC Secretary General Ace Magashule has been handed over to the party’s top five to deal with him. Photo: The South African.
The African National Congress (ANC) has called on the party’s top 5 to deal with the errant behaviour of its suspended Secretary General following his behaviour in the last couple of days. This came as the ruling party came to the close of the meeting of its highest decision-making body, the National Executive Committee (NEC), on Monday. The meeting was held virtually.
Ace Magashule, who has been charged with corruption stemming from a tender awarded during the time he was Premier of the Free State, was given a chance to step aside in what has come to be known as the step aside resolution. However, after consulting with former presidents of the party and country, he did not step aside. This then resulted in his party serving him with a suspension letter. In response, or was it prior to the suspension letter, Magashule sent his own suspension letter to the party president Cyril Ramaphosa in what has been viewed as a desperate move.
Furthermore, owing to his suspension as the Secretary General, which he has since appealed, he should not have been part of the NEC meeting, which was held over three days ending on Monday. However, a defiant Magashule had to be extricated from the meeting that he says he convened. Following this, it is reported that the NEC recommended that he must have additional charges preferred against him owing to his defiance of the suspension.
According to sources within the NEC meeting, the meeting has come to view Magashule’s conduct as a disciplinary issue and hence the request for him to be handled by the top five, of which he was a part before his suspension. The general feeling amongst the delegates to the meeting is that he should not have defied his suspension. Delegates further reckoned that his issue was a stress test for the party’s fight against corruption and its attempt to renew itself.
However, according to these internal sources, the three-day meeting also discussed other issues such as the upcoming council elections that are set for October as well as the state of the organisation in general.
