Johannesburg - The ANC has given its senior and provincial leaders facing criminal charges the choice to voluntarily step down from their positions within 30 days or face suspension by the party.
This was revealed by President Cyril Ramaphosa following the party’s extended national executive committee which concluded on Monday night.
Ramaphosa instructed the office of the secretary- general Ace Magashule - who is also facing criminal charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering - to communicate the party’s decision to all affected members of the ANC.
He said their decision was in line with resolutions taken at its 54th National Conference on ANC Credibility and Integrity, as well as decisions of NEC meetings on 28-30 August and 6-9 December 2020 on the implementation of these resolutions.
“The NEC resolved that these resolutions must be implemented in line with the guidelines and procedures adopted by the NEC at its meeting on 13-14 February 2021.
“All members who have been charged with corruption or other serious crimes must step aside within 30 days, failing which they should be suspended in terms of Rule 25.70 of the ANC Constitution.
“The meeting emphasised that the 30 day period will be to enable the implementation of the decision in line with the guidelines, not to review the decision,” Ramaphosa said.
He said that the NEC also agreed that the provincial chairpersons and secretaries would meet with the national officials during that time to further refine the guidelines to ensure the resolution could be effectively and practically implemented.
“The Secretary General’s Office will work with the provinces to identify all people affected and inform them of the decision. The NEC welcomed the decision by the ANC Secretary General Cde Ace Magashule to use this time to seek the counsel of past leaders of our movement.
“The NEC called on all ANC members to rally around this decision and not to engage in any acts of indiscipline, including through mobilisation or public statements that undermine implementation of the conference resolutions,” Ramaphosa emphasised.
The party’s NEC also vowed to act against those within its ranks calling themselves radical economic transformation (RET) forces saying: “The NEC therefore condemned the establishment of groups operating as an organised faction within the ANC to undermine the ideological and organisational integrity of the ANC.”
“The NEC warned those who wish to subvert the ANC by seeking to create diversions that we will not tolerate meddling in the internal affairs of the ANC or the use of ANC resources to undertake counter-revolutionary activities from within its structures and facilities.
“The meeting agreed that no ANC member should associate themselves with or be involved in the so-called ‘RET Forces’. Furthermore, the NEC will not allow will not allow any member of the ANC staff to use the resources and premises of the ANC to hold meetings of the RET or any other faction.
“In terms of Rule 25.9 of the ANC Constitution on ‘Institution of disciplinary proceedings’, the NEC directs the Presenter of the ANC to investigate these matters and, if deemed necessary, immediately formulate charges for the attention of the National Disciplinary Committee,” Ramaphosa said.
He added that the NEC has also noted the re-emergence of an orchestrated campaign of “fake news” directed against him and other leaders of the ANC – akin to the disinformation campaign South Africa experienced during the height of state capture.
Political Bureau