Mbali Shinga moves to block Speaker from removing her from the KZN Legislature

The NFP's KwaZulu-Natal chairperson Mbali Shinga has moved to block the Speaker of the provincial Legislature from removing her following her expulsion from the party.

On Sunday, Shinga who is also Social Development MEC in the Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), was fired by her party after she was found guilty on charges of misconduct and gross insubordination.

The charges emanated from her defiance of the party’s directive to support the Umkhonto weSizwe (MKP) sponsored motion of no confidence against Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli last year.

This prompted her lawyer Sithembiso Mbhele to write a letter to Speaker Nontembeko Boyce, asking her not to remove his client on the basis of the dismissal by the party, characterising it as inconsistent with the party’s constitution.

In the letter, Mbhele said the 'purported expulsion is neither final nor enforceable and Shinga’s membership status remains a subject of the pending internal processes'.

“In the circumstances, we respectfully request that your office take note that  the purported expulsion is formally disputed and internal remedies have not yet been exhausted, therefore any steps affecting our client’s status, rights, privileges or position in the legislature ought to be held in abeyance pending the finalisation of the internal processes,” read the letter.

However, in her response Boyce said she would not get involved in the party’s internal dispute and reminded Shinga’s lawyers that her (Boyce's) action would be guided by Section 106(3)(c) of the constitution which stipulates that a member of the Legislature ceases to be member when he or she ceases to be a member of the party that nominated him or her to represent them in the Legislature.

"The Speaker’s Office has not yet received a formal communication from the NFP about Shinga’s expulsion therefore it would not apply Section 106(3)(c)."

Shinga’s attorneys confirmed that their client is appealing the expulsion internally and if unsuccessful, the matter will go to court.

Boyce confirmed receiving the letter from Shinga's lawyers.

On December 15, the NFP instructed Shinga as its sole representative in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature to support the MKP motion with the intention of establishing a new coalition with the MKP.

Before directing her to help oust Ntuli, the NFP had formally withdrawn from the KZN GPU, citing the IFP’s reneging from an agreement to hand over at least a municipality to the NFP. The IFP denied that such an agreement existed.

However Shinga openly defied the instruction. She defended her defiance, saying there was no consultation with her provincial executive committee which she chairs, about switching sides therefore she stuck to the existing arrangement. The GPU is made up of a coalition of the ANC, DA, IFP and NFP.

Shinga’s replacement was expected to be on the agenda of the NFP’s national executive committee (NEC) meeting this weekend in Ulundi, however, this meeting has been challenged by the party’s chairperson of the deployment committee Thuba Thwala.

He filed the urgent court papers in Durban High Court for an application to interdict the sitting. The matter is expected to be heard on Thursday, April 23. 

In the papers, Thwala said the meeting 'was convened to take decisions which are inconsistent with the party's constitution' and asked the court to stop it from taking place.

He cited irreparable harm to the party if the meeting is allowed to sit.

Thwala further cited 'several breaches of the constitution' which include the nomination processes of electing the party’s Secretary-General and deputy at the weekend meeting. He argued that according to the constitution, these positions should be filled at a general conference, not during an NEC meeting.

Thwala also wants the court to stop the NEC from discussing the deployment of members while he is not present, arguing that he is chairperson of the deployment committee.

willem.phungula@inl.co.za