Showdown looms over ANC’s poll lists after Chief Justice Zondo enters the fray

A battle in the ANC over whether to give an election thumbs-down to cadres implicated in corruption and misconduct is likely to come to a head on Monday, 4 March.

Showdown looms over ANC’s poll lists after Chief Justice Zondo enters the fray

On Monday morning, the ANC top brass meet at the Birchwood Conference Centre in Boksburg to finalise the party’s election lists. A battle — that cuts across the ANC’s factions and leagues — about corruption and who gets on to the election lists is roiling the party.

At the weekend, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo was drawn into the fray when he denied a City Press report which claimed that Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe had successfully challenged the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. (The commission recommended further investigations into Mantashe related to security installations by Bosasa, the facilities management and catering company at the heart of South Africa’s story of corruption.)

Mantashe said City Press had not contacted him before publication and confirmed the courts had yet to hear his review.

Zondo said: “The statement in the City Press that Minister Mantashe successfully challenged the State Capture Commission report is simply not true. The City Press failed to do a basic investigation on this. The true position is that Minister Mantashe’s review application is still pending and has not yet been decided. In fact, no review application against the commission’s report has been decided.”

It has been reported that the ANC’s Integrity Commission, chaired by the Rev Frank Chikane, has recommended that ANC cadres named in the State Capture Commission report be excluded from election lists. The party is set to finalise the lists, which must be lodged with the Electoral Commission by Friday, March 8.

Among ANC members named by the State Capture Commission as having a case to answer for abuse of power, abrogation of duty and instances of alleged corruption are:

Current members of the executive

• Gwede Mantashe — minister of mineral resources and energy and ANC national chairperson (Bosasa graft).
• Zizi Kodwa — minister of sports, arts and culture (favours from corruption-accused company EOH).
• Khumbudzo Ntshavheni — minister in the Presidency (for lack of vigilance as a board member at Denel during the administration of former president Jacob Zuma).
• David Mahlobo — deputy minister of water and sanitation (alleged looting of national intelligence funds and siphoning a monthly allowance of about R2.5-million to Zuma while intelligence minister under his administration).

Senior ANC official 

• Nomvula Mokonyane — first secretary-general of the ANC (Bosasa graft).

ANC members of the National Assembly

• Cedrick Frolick (Bosasa graft).
• Thabang Makwetla (Bosasa graft).
• Bongani Bongo (numerous allegations).
• Mosebenzi Zwane (numerous allegations).
• Sfiso Buthelezi — (alleged corruption at the Passenger Rail Agency of SA while board chairperson).

ANC member of the National Council of Provinces

• Winnie Ngwenya (Bosasa graft).

ANC NEC

• Malusi Gigaba (serving the Gupta network using the numerous Cabinet portfolios he occupied, for which he allegedly received cash payments).

ANC veterans

• Vincent Smith (Bosasa graft).
• SA’s ambassador to China, Siyabonga Cwele (for alleged abuse of power while intelligence minister).
• Former president Jacob Zuma (for numerous abuses of power related to State Capture; Zuma is now the public face of the uMkhonto Wesizwe party).
• Former ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule (for alleged corruption related to his time as Free State premier; Magashule now heads the African Congress for Transformation party).

The ANC agreed to exclude from the lists its members implicated in State Capture after veteran Mavuso Msimang resigned and returned after the party’s turnabout. However, the debate about whether or not they should be on party lists is still dividing the party and appears to have yet to be concluded.

The exclusions could affect bigwigs including Dr Zweli Mkhize, who was implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal exposed by Daily Maverick. (See Pieter Louis-Myburgh’s explainer two years on from first exposure.)  Mkhize is the chairperson of the ANC’s influential social transformation committee.

Nonkululeko Njilo reported here on the 97 party members and leaders implicated in the State Capture Commission report, and on the process followed by the previous Integrity Commission.

Marianne Merten reported here on Parliament clearing four MPs implicated by the State Capture Commission.

Explainer

The ANC members affected by the Integrity Commission report argue they do not have to step aside from their roles or decline nomination to be on the party lists because they have not been charged with any offence under the law.

The ANC has watered down the step-aside rule to deal with corruption from an initial 2017 conference resolution, which said that members implicated in public corruption scandals should step aside. The party’s National Executive Committee decided this was prejudicial and it was moderated to “step aside only after being charged”.

Even though the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture was a judicial process, its rules of evidence differ from those of a legal process. Hence, members implicated in it argue that they must first be charged before stepping aside from the party’s election lists.

The ANC Veterans’ League, chaired by Snuki Zikalala, has lobbied for the implicated members to be excluded. The Women’s and Youth League say members not formally charged should be on party election lists.

Mantashe, Kodwa and Mokonyane characterised the allegations against them as coming from individuals who did not understand the ANC culture of comradely care and kinship.

Three opinion polls, including its own, have found that the ANC is likely to poll lower than ever before in the May 29 election. This means getting a higher position on party lists is vital to securing political office. DM