The regional ANC’s two most senior party officials, Buffalo City mayor Princess Faku and regional secretary Antonio Carels, are among those who face being hauled before the province’s top five leaders over allegations of “orchestrated ill-discipline”.
This follows recent chaotic by-elections in Buffalo City Metro’s wards 12 and 20, where regional ANC leaders were at each other’s throats over who should emerge as candidate councillors.
Faku and Carels came under the spotlight of the party’s provincial executive committee (PEC) meeting late on Monday over their alleged interference in the selection process during October’s by-elections.
The meeting recommended the two leaders be hauled before the party’s top five provincial leaders to explain why charges against them should not be instituted.
At least eight other ANC members in the region were accused of being “at the centre of orchestrating chaos and disruptions” during the build-up to the by-elections, and are to face the party’s disciplinary committee.
This was confirmed on Tuesday by ANC provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi.
He said some of those to face the disciplinary committee had been found to have actively participated in campaigning against their own party by urging voters to vote for the EFF, as they were not happy with the ANC’s choice of candidates.
The region is currently preparing for its elective conference scheduled for late May, where factions aligned to Faku and Carels, once close allies, are set to face off for political control of the region.
Over the past year or more, the region has been in the crosshairs of both the national and provincial ANC bosses, after a fallout between Faku and Carels resulted in glaring political infighting and divisions in the area.
These challenges also spilt over to affect the smooth running of the metro’s council.
This forced provincial and national ANC leaders to read the riot act to the region, saying if the local political leadership could not deal with the infighting and divisions, they should rather “ship out”.
The latest developments come after a provincial ANC-sanctioned task team, which probed the shenanigans around the two by-elections, found there was “orchestrated ill-discipline, chaos and hobnobbing with opposition parties”.
It found this stemmed “from the factional politics within the regional executive committee, particularly deep differences between the regional chairperson and secretary”.
Neither Faku nor Carels responded to questions by the time of publication.
Dr WB Rubusana regional executive committee spokesperson Vuyo Jali refused to comment on the matter, referring questions to the party’s provincial leadership.
In a confidential report tabled before the PEC meeting, it was revealed that the task team report “did allude [to the fact] a negative conduct by regional leaders, in particular the ANC regional chairperson [Faku] and regional secretary [Carels], were at the centre of such conflict, which had elements of bringing the organisation into disrepute”.
“Worth noting is that the task team met the two regional leaders as part of their investigation and the two did not dispute the allegations made against them.
“Further, the report indicated ANC members actively participated to campaign against the ANC and its processes during the selection and campaigning period.
“Some of those members are repeat offenders who previously stood as independent candidates in 2021, and went further to campaign for opposition candidates during the by-elections.
“Furthermore, the identified members went as far as disrupting the investigative meetings led by the task team, physically threatened them and insulted the teams.
“However, their nefarious tactics did not materialise as the process was followed to its logical conclusion by the task team,” the report states.
“Given this continued ill-discipline by some ANC members, the ANC needs to take decisive action and subject all the identified individuals who actively participated in the chaos and disruptions in wards 12 and 20 to the authoritative body for such matters — the provincial disciplinary committee.”
Two former ANC councillors, whose names are known to the Dispatch and who both stood as independent candidates in the 2021 local government elections, “were found to be at the centre of orchestrating chaos and disruptions within the ANC” in the by-elections.
Reflecting on their conduct, the report states: “This continued mischief and anti-organisational mayhem is a result of failures for the ANC to effect consequence management and instil discipline against any individual or member.”
The two were found to “unabatedly continue to paralyse the ANC and orchestrate chaos, against the unity and renewal programme of the party”.
On Tuesday, Ngcukayitobi said as part of corrective measures, charges could soon be preferred against those expected to appear and account before the province’s top five.
“We discovered that there were many people within the organisation who campaigned against the ANC in those by-elections,” he said.
“As a result, the ANC will institute a process against them to deal with such behavioural patterns.
“We will speak to them directly as individuals, and where necessary, charges will be instituted against those found to have breached the party’s code of conduct.”
Ngcukayitobi said the process would start as soon as possible.
He was not at liberty to name any individuals involved until notices had been given to the people concerned, but the Dispatch has seen their names on the PWC report.
He confirmed more than eight party members were set to face “corrective measures”.
It has been reliably learnt that some of those who attended the two-day PEC meeting had campaigned for the report on the BCM shenanigans to be shelved and not tabled.
Daily Dispatch
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