By REGINALD KANYANE

Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in the North West calls for the disbandment of the North West Provincial Legislature. COSATU provincial secretary, Kopano Konopi said they have been disturbed by the inaction of the ANC to resolve the problems facing the provincial administration.

“There was a protracted battle between the ANC and its deployees on the filling of the vacancy of the MEC of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (COGHSTA) following the death of Gordon Kegakilwe.

“The post was filled by the current incumbent, MEC Mmoloki Cwaile without the blessing of the party in the province and national. The alliance and the deployment committee of the ANC in the province were never consulted,” Konopi said.

He added that they have also learned with disappointment that the ANC MPLs in the NWPL have voted with the members of the opposition parties in electing the Chair of Chairs. Konopi said this conduct is the highest form of ill-discipline and drastic steps should be taken to correct the situation.

“It is clear the mandate of the ANC and voters has been abandoned. The federation is calling for fresh elections in the province because leaders are no longer willing to represent the party, but they represent their own jackets.

“COSATU wants to remind all the members of the ANC in the NWPL that they are all deployees of the movement. The ANC National Executive Committee needs to intervene before the situation gets out of hand,” he said.

However, many ANC branches across the province came out gun blazing and accused the ANC IPC of factionalism. Mamusa Sub Region Branches representative, Papa Jood said their branches were disgusted by the apparent temporary suspension of Aaron Mocwana and others on the basis of undisclosed allegations by the so-called unconstitutional IPC.

“The branches view this as a publicity stunt and a display of political anarchy by those who want to clinch unelected positions. We have long noted attempts by the IPC to remove those who do not dance to their tune nor crouch for crumbs of tenders. 

“The IPC has failed to remove mayors and municipal managers for the past twelve months and now they have turned their sight to attempting a coup in the NWPL and the caucus,” Jood said.

He further said the IPC cannot proclaim the dishonest prophecy of evidence that voting has taken place through secret ballot, unless it says it was present in those voting booths inside the Legislature. Jood further accused the IPC of double standards.

“The IPC once instructed councillors to work with the opposition to remove the troikas in different municipalities. So, it cannot be them who now today want to accuse members of the ANC for colluding with opposition because honestly, this is exactly their style.  

“The same people who are now MECs worked with opposition to remove Chairman, Supra Mahumapelo. The same so-called IPC coordinator, Hlomani Chauke was ready to vote with the opposition to remove President Jacob Zuma in National Parliament. Today he acts like an angel and a perfect comrade, so we cannot be fooled,” he said.

Jood said they will stop at nothing to expose this blatant factionalism and the hypocrisy that is done by this ‘monster structure’ that is busy eating the unity of the ANC in this province. He added that the IPC does not have powers to take such decisions of suspending the membership of any ANC members even expelling them because they serve at the behest of the NEC and the sooner they are disbanded the better. 

“Their meeting with the EFF plotting to remove North West Premier, Prof Job Mokgoro through a motion is known, and will be exposed even before it starts. It is our responsibility as the membership of the ANC as custodians of its constitution to protect and make sure that every rule is adhered to,” he said.

The ANCYL regional spokesperson in Ngaka Modri Molema, Wessel Morweng shared the same sentiments. Morweng said these excruciating developments are not only unfortunate, but they have a serious negative impact on the image of the glorious movement.

“The North West ANC IPC does not only possess a high level of insanity, but they have opted to turn our glorious organization into a circus of note. Their thoughtless conduct continues to reflect the type of leadership we have in the ANC North West continues to lead us into a serious political abyss.

“The harsh reality is that Chauke’s one-man show called the ANC North West IPC continues to cause more harm than good to the livelihood of the organisation in the province. It is evident enough that Chauke’s IPC is self-serving and has no regard for the ANC principle and constitution,” Morweng said.

He alleged that the ANC IPC structure lacks a serious organisational understanding as they are guided by personal feelings as opposed to the political understanding of running a big organization like the ANC. Morweng said as the ANCYL in Ngaka Modiri Molema region call on Mokgoro to continue doing his work diligently as he has been doing.

Meanwhile, suspended MPLs representative, Aaron Mocwana said they are challenging their suspension. Mocwana said the rule 25.4.3 of the ANC constitution gives the powers to any member of the ruling party who is facing any disciplinary hearing over allegations of misconduct to appeal, especially when such a member holds any public office.

“We have lodged an appeal to the ANC National Disciplinary Committee of Appeal (NDCA). That is how we have exercised that particular right through the constitution of the ANC for 2017 as amended.

“Now, we have made an appeal and we have denied all allegations levelled against us. We have also requested that the ANC IPC in the North West furnish us with proof of what they are saying because the voting was agreed on the 27 January 2021 in a virtually sitting,” said Mocwana.

He further said the NWPL Speaker, Sussana Dantjie could not conduct its business, but she utilised the rule 6 of the Standing Rules of the NWPL. Mocwana added that Dantjie adjourned the sitting, so that it could take place on 28 January 2021 through physical attendance and allow secret voting to take place.

“Now, when coming to the issue of who voted who and so on, it is highly impossible for us to the to be charged on that particular matter because voting was secret. Now, we require the IPC to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt,” he said.

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By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

North West University (NWU) has partnered with the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) to support Team South Africa as a preferred provider in its preparation for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympic Games.

According to the NWU’s Centre for Health and Human Performance (CHHP) director, Prof Pieter Kruger, some of the services that will be offered include assistance with the understanding of the mechanics of anxiety and why the brain struggles with uncertainty.

Kruger said the centre has grown from strength to strength since its recent inception.

“The focus of the CHHP is on rendering comprehensive, quality, evidence-based services in the field of health and human performance, underpinned by neuroscience and cutting-edge technology.

“We will also help the athletes in exploring psychological challenges to Covid-19 that may affect their well-being and subsequently their performance. The principles we will be discussing are very much relevant to well-being, and to performance under pressure,” he said.

Kruger added that the latest achievement confirms the fact that they are a dynamic centre with serious intent and operating at the highest level. He said the CHHP will offer mental health screening and advisory services to all athletes, with a focus on improving well-being and performance.

“The process will commence during the first week in February and will allow all athletes the opportunity to attend the programme over the following two months. The CHHP was created at the NWU after combining the expertise of the Institute of Psychology and Wellbeing, the Institute for Sport Science and Development and the Institute for Biokinetics.

“Although the main aim would initially be to provide the athletes with evidence-based tools and techniques specifically for dealing with anxiety and uncertainty, the skills are equally applicable in a high-performance competition environment,” said Kruger.

He further said they will also be discussing the application of specific functional behaviours to support the athletes during difficult times. Kruger said the athletes will undergo a brief psychometric assessment prior to the commencement of the programme.

“This will allow the CHHP clinicians to adjust the programme content to the specific needs of the athlete. The CHHP will host nine workshop programmes to ensure that the entire 219-strong Olympic and Paralympic group gets an opportunity to undergo the training.

“The athletes will also be supplied with additional resources and referral pathways for those individuals who feel that they need more support after the programme. We look forward to collaborating with SASCOC and to supporting our Olympic and Paralympic squads to maximise their performance at the Games later in the year,” he said.

Kruger highlighted that the CHHP has an exceptional team of practitioners across the spectrum of health and human performance and he trust that they will be able to make a meaningful difference to the athletes.

The forthcoming Olympic Games are scheduled to take place in July of this year in Tokyo, Japan.

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By STAFF REPORTER

Tavern owners and revellers breathe ‘a sigh of relief’ after President Cyril Ramaphosa relaxed the adjusted lockdown regulations. Ramaphosa announced that the sale of alcohol will be allowed from Monday to Thursday during a ‘family meeting’ address last night. 

“We have recorded our lowest daily increase in infections since the beginning of December last year. In fact, the average rate of new infections has been steadily coming down over the last three weeks, indicating that we have now passed the peak of the second wave.

“In the past seven days, the daily average of new infections was around 5,500, compared to just over 10,000 infections in the previous seven days. In other words, the average number of daily new infections has come down to almost half of what it was,” he said.

Ramaphosa further said the number of hospital admissions has also been falling. He said at the peak of the second wave, the country has recorded over 2,300 hospital admissions in a day.

“This had fallen to 295 hospital admissions by the 29th of January. While all the indicators are heading in the right direction, we are still experiencing relatively high rates of transmission.

“We are pleased that across the country, most people are adhering to the restrictions we have had to impose and are diligently observing the basic health measures needed to prevent infection,” said Ramaphosa.

He said they are acutely aware that these restrictions have negatively affected businesses and threatened jobs in the hospitality, tourism, and related industries. 

Ramaphosa added that they are determined that such restrictions should not continue any longer than is absolutely necessary to contain the pandemic and minimise the loss of life.

“It is for this reason that we will continue to work with business and labour in these sectors to revive businesses and restore jobs both in the immediate and longer-term. Over the last few days, we have assessed the state of the pandemic.

“We have sought the advice of experts and consulted with representatives of provincial and local government and traditional leaders. With the clear decline in new infections, hospital admissions, and deaths, Cabinet has decided to steadily ease a number of restrictions under adjusted Level 3,” he said.

Ramaphosa said the hours of the curfew will now be from 11pm to 4am and establishments will need to close by 10pm to allow their customers and staff to return home by curfew. He said Faith-based gatherings will be permitted, subject to health protocols.

“Such gatherings may not exceed 50 people for indoor venues and 100 persons for outdoor venues. Where the venue is too small to accommodate these numbers with appropriate social distancing, then no more than 50% of the capacity of the venue may be used.

“Public places such as beaches, dams, rivers, parks, and public swimming pools will be reopened subject to health protocols. Restrictions on the sale of alcohol will be eased. The sale of alcohol by licensed premises for off-site consumption will be permitted from Mondays to Thursdays, from 10am to 6pm,” said Ramaphosa.

He said duty-free shops, registered wineries, wine farms, micro-breweries and micro-distilleries will be able to sell alcohol for off-site consumption during their normal licensed operating hours.

Ramaphosa added that these changes have been made possible by the significant reduction in COVID-19 hospital admissions across all provinces, reducing the pressure on beds and hospital personnel. He urged people to drink responsibly so that they do not experience a spike in trauma cases or an increase in infections due to reckless behaviour.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

President Cyril Ramaphosa said the country has begun a new chapter in the struggle against the coronavirus. This comes after the country received its first consignment of COVID-19 vaccines. Ramaphosa said the consignment consisting of one million doses of the Covishield vaccine produced by the Serum Institute in India. 

This vaccine was developed by the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca together with the University of Oxford and South Africa was one of the countries where clinical trials were held to assess the drug’s efficacy.

“The arrival of these vaccines contains the promise that we can turn the tide on this disease that has caused so much devastation and hardship in our country and across the world.

“The speed and scale at which new vaccines have been developed is unprecedented in human history and represents the monumental progress that humanity can achieve in the face of a common threat,” he said.

Ramaphosa added that South Africa has been part of this incredible journey by the global community in search of a lasting solution to the COVID-19 pandemic. He further thanked all South Africans who participated in various vaccines trials on a voluntary basis and commend all the researchers who led these studies.

“Many of our researchers have participated in ground-breaking research in the field of genomics providing new information about the virus leading to the identification of the variant known as 501Y.V2.

“Now that the vaccines have arrived, they will be tested at the National Control Laboratory to confirm that their integrity has been maintained during transportation,” said Ramaphosa.

He said after testing, they will be distributed across the country to thousands of healthcare workers who every day put their own lives at risk to save others. 

Ramaphosa said in accordance with a phased rollout strategy, all healthcare workers in the public and private sectors will be prioritised for vaccination.

“Provincial health departments have submitted their distribution plans and we have identified about 200 facilities to which the vaccines can be distributed. 

“Once we have completed the vaccination of healthcare workers, we will move to Phase 2 of the national vaccine strategy, which will include essential workers, people over 60 years, people with co-morbidities as well as those living in places such as nursing homes and hostels,” he said.

Ramaphosa said in Phase 3, they will extend the vaccination programme to the rest of the adult population. He said they know many of South Africans will be asking the all-important question on how they will access the vaccine if they fall in the categories to which he has have referred,” he said.

“The Department of Health has developed an Electronic Vaccine Data System to streamline the vaccine registration and rollout process. This will allow us to capture all relevant data associated with the administration of the vaccine,” said Ramaphosa.

He said: “This system allows a person to make an appointment as soon as they qualify for a vaccination at the vaccine centre closest to them. The system will record vaccinations as they are administered.

“As I said during my previous address, we are sourcing our vaccines from a number of suppliers. In addition to the 1 million Covishield doses that we received today, we expect another 500,000 doses from the Serum Institute of India to arrive later in February.”

Ramaphosa said they have secured 12 million doses in total from the global COVAX facility, which has indicated that it will release approximately 2 million doses by March. He further said they have secured 9 million vaccine doses from Johnson & Johnson, commencing with delivery in the second quarter.

“Johnson & Johnson has contracted Aspen, one of our pharmaceutical companies, to manufacture these vaccines in South Africa. In addition, Pfizer has committed 20 million vaccine doses commencing with deliveries in the second quarter.

“We are in advanced negotiations with manufacturers to secure additional supplies. South Africa will also receive an allocation of vaccine doses through the African Union, which has been negotiating with manufacturers to secure vaccines for the entire continent on a pooled basis,” said Ramaphosa.

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By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

The embattled former president, Jacob Zuma came out gun blazing and showed the State Capture Commission of Inquiry a ‘middle’ finger. This comes after the Constitutional Court ruled in favour of the commission to forced Zuma to appear before it and cooperate.

Zuma walked out of the commission a few months ago and later requested the chairperson of the commission, Deputy Judge Justice Raymond Zondo to recuse himself citing a conflict of interest because he is a friend with Zondo.

However, dismissed Zuma’s allegations and said his relationship with Zuma was only ‘professional’. Now, Zuma has released a statement saying that he will never cooperate with the commission despite the Concourt ruling.

“It is patently clear to me that I am being singled out for different and special treatment by the judiciary and the legal system as a whole. I, therefore, states in advance that the Commission into Allegations of State Capture can expect no further co-operation from me in any of their processes going forward.

“If this stance is considered to be a violation of their law, then let their law take its course. I do not fear being arrested, I do not fear being convicted nor do I fear being incarcerated,”

Zuma said the recent extraordinary and unprecedented decision of the ConCourt stripped him of his basic constitutional rights as an individual citizen. He said when the former Public Protector, Advocate Thuli Madonsela stipulated the terms upon which the President would establish a commission of inquiry to look into allegations of state capture, she had recommended that the chairperson of the inquiry be appointed by the Chief Justice and not the president as is the normal and correct legal procedure.

“As the President at the time, I legally challenged this approach by the Public Protector stating that she was overstepping the powers of her office by imposing the decision to appoint a commission of inquiry on the president and by imposing how the head of that commission of the inquiry should be appointed.

“The Public Protector stated that she made the recommendation of the appointment of a commission of inquiry because her term of office was ending and she would not have had sufficient time to complete her investigation into the complaints that had been lodged,” said Zuma.

He added that this in itself was also legally problematic in that, the investigation was carried out by her office and not her as an incumbent in that office. Zuma said Madonsela’s successor would have carried on with the work she had started as the work is that of the office of Public Protector and not the individual serving as the Public Protector at the time.

“Madonsela did not leave that office having completed every single investigation that was before her when her term ended but deemed it necessary that this particular investigation be referred to a commission of inquiry and not the other investigations that she had not completed at the time.

It was clear then as is clear now that given that this matter contained specific allegations against Zuma, it needed a different and special approach that would deviate from the law and the constitution to ensure that Zuma was dealt with differently,” he said.

He outlined that the High Court in Pretoria decided in favour of the Public Protector in that legal challenge stating, amongst other things, that the commission of inquiry as recommended by the Public Protector would be different in that it would only have such powers as are directly equal to the powers of the office of the Public Protector.

“What has subsequently transpired with the establishment and functioning of the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture is completely at odds with what the court stated as the envisaged purpose of this commission.

“The Commission into Allegations of State Capture led by Zondo, has followed in the steps of the former Public Protector in how it also has continued with creating a special and different approach to specifically, deal with Zuma,” he said.

Zuma alleged that Zondo has unprovoked called special press conferences to make specific announcements about him. He further said this has never happened to any other witness.

“Recently, the commission ran to the ConCourt on an urgent basis to get it to compel me to attend at the commission and give answers. Effectively, this has undermined a litany of my constitutional rights including the right to the presumption of innocence.

“I have never said that I do not want to appear before the commission, but have said that I cannot appear before Deputy Chief Justice Zondo because of a well-founded apprehension of bias and a history of personal relations between the Deputy Chief Justice and myself,” said Zuma.

He added that he had taken the decision by the Deputy Chief Justice not to recuse himself on review as he believes his presiding over the proceedings do not provide him the certainty of a fair and just hearing. Zuma also took a jab at the ConCourt and accused it of also mimics the posture of the commission.

“This has now also created a special and different set of circumstances specifically designed to deal with Zuma by suspending my constitutional rights rendering me completely defenceless against the commission.

“The Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture should have been rightly named the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture against Jacob Zuma as it has been obviously established to investigate me specifically,” said Zuma.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to receive the first consignment of COVID-19 vaccine on Monday at the OR Tambo International Airport around 3pm.

According to the statement from the presidency, Ramaphosa will be accompanied by the Deputy President, David Mabuza who chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Vaccines.

Ramphosa’s acting spokesperson, Tyren Seale said Ramaphosa and Mabuza will be joined by Minister of Health, Dr Zweli Mkhize, Acting Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, High Commissioner of the Republic of India, Jaideep Sarkar and Dr Morena Makhoana who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Biovac.

“Biovac is a bio-pharmaceutical company that was formed in 2003 in a partnership between government and private investors to establish local vaccine manufacturing capability.

“Biovac will play an important role in the quality assurance, warehousing and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. High Commissioner Sarkar will represent India as the country of origin of the first vaccine to be rolled out in South Africa,” Seale said.

He further said the Serum Institute of India has been licensed to produce a vaccine that has been developed by the multinational pharmaceutical and bio pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca in collaboration with the University of Oxford.

Seale added that the arrival of the first consignment at OR Tambo International Airport marks the start of the vaccine rollout which Ramaphosa described as the largest and most complex logistical vaccine undertaking in South Africa’s country’s history.

“The scale of delivery is unprecedented in terms of the number of people who have to be reached within a short space of time. The aim of the vaccination programme is to achieve immunity across the population. The first phase of this rollout programme will prioritise around 1.2 million frontline health workers.

“Government is coordinating the vaccine programme through the committee chaired by Deputy President, which is focused on procurement, distribution, actual vaccination, monitoring, communication and mobilisation,” said Seale.

He said today’s arrival event will be brief, with dignitaries witnessing airline, airport, health, customs and security personnel perform their duties of ensuring that the vaccine consignment is cleared and securely transported to its cold-room destination.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance (DA) leader, Johnn Steenhuisen said: “Today our lawyers made an urgent application to the Western Cape High Court to obtain a declarator that government’s conduct in procuring vaccines as well as its preparation for the rollout of these vaccines are in violation of several constitutional principles.

“We asked the court to instruct government to develop a comprehensive and coordinated vaccination rollout plan, and to deliver this plan no later than one month of the order.”

Steenhuisen added that the failure to provide COVID-19 vaccines timeously when these vaccines are available is a violation of people’s rights, in terms of Section 27(1) of the Constitution, to have access to healthcare services, as well as a violation of government’s obligation in terms of Section 27(2) to take reasonable measures to achieve the progressive realisation of the right to access healthcare.

He said furthermore, it is a violation of the right to life, as enshrined in Section 11 of the Bill of Rights.

“There is also no rationality in failing to secure sufficient vaccines despite knowing early on how important they’d be and having had access to them. This falls short of the fundamental constitutional prescript of the Rule of Law, which requires that decision-making be rational.

“The relief we are seeking is similar to the relief that the TAC was granted two decades ago when it took government to court to compel it to make public its antiretroviral rollout programme,” said Steenhuisen.

He further said without such a transparent plan that includes clear timelines and division of responsibilities, it will be impossible for not only the DA as official opposition, but also the media and civil society, to hold government to account.

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By BAKANG MOKOTO

The outgoing African Union chairperson, Cyril Ramaphosa said that they are working with the COVAX Facility to ensure that African countries also get their fair share of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Ramaphosa said the vaccine roll-out campaign has already commenced and is led by the Vaccine Acquisition Task Team.

“The vaccine rollout has already commenced on the continent and we aspire to have the majority of the continent’s population vaccinated by the end of 2021 to achieve herd immunity.

“We have acted as one to protect health, people, and livelihoods on the continent. In doing so, we have demonstrated our capacity for self-reliance and our ability to be the drivers of our own development,” he said.

Ramaphosa further said despite the dominance of COVID-19, they have still managed to make advances in several of our key priorities. He said during their term, the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was finally launched, heralding a new era of intra-African trade and economic integration.

“Even under the difficult conditions posed by the pandemic, the continent has pushed ahead towards the goal of ‘silencing the guns’ on the continent. The AU has been actively involved in negotiations around the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, in achieving a ceasefire in Libya and promoting peace in South Sudan.

“The priorities we outlined for our term, among them furthering peace and security, the economic empowerment of women, and deepening economic integration had to be immediately and dramatically reoriented to deal with the pandemic.

“Our most pressing task was to steer the focus of the African Union to addressing the worst global emergency in over a century. COVID-19 has affected all the countries on the continent. To date, there are more than 3.5 million confirmed cases in Africa and more than 88,000 people have died,” said Ramaphosa.

He added that it has been a health, humanitarian, social and economic crisis for African countries, most of which are inadequately resourced to manage a health emergency of this size. Ramaphosa added that yet, as unprecedented as the nature of the pandemic has been, so too has been the manner in which African countries have come together to fight it.

“In doing so, we have drawn principally on the continent’s own expertise, capabilities, and institutions such as Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

“Africa did not sit by passively as the true extent and danger of the pandemic unfurled. From the earliest days of the pandemic and led by the AU, we swiftly developed a continental response strategy, driven by the Africa CDC and regional task forces,” he said.

Ramaphosa said they have realised that every country on the continent would be severely affected by the pandemic. He said most would not have the resources needed to meet the public health challenge or to protect their economies.

“We, therefore, agreed as African countries to appoint several prominent Africans as special envoys, who would engage with international funders and multilateral institutions to make the case for financial support and debt relief on Africa’s behalf.

“In this way, working as one continent, we were able to achieve debt relief for many countries and financial assistance towards our COVID response and economic recovery. But much as African countries went to the international community for support, we first helped ourselves – establishing and capitalising a continental COVID-19 Response Fund,” said Ramaphosa.

He further said for every partnership forged with better-resourced nations and the international donor community, they have set up their own innovative and ground-breaking African Medical Supplies Platform to enable all African countries to quickly secure personal protective equipment and other medical supplies in an equitable, affordable manner.

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By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

The ANC Interim Provincial Committee in the North West is expected to convene a press conference at ANC Provincial offices, Mpekwa House on Sunday at 11am to officially announce the suspension of ANC memberships of five Members of Provincial Legislature (MPLs) in the North West Provincial Legislature.

The suspension decision comes after the ANC Interim Provincial Committee in the North West allegedly established that Mokgoro was among five ANC members of the NWPL who defied the party’s mandate this week by voting for ANC MPL, Priscilla Williams, as the NWPL’s Chair of Chairs.

The ANC IPC instructed its members to vote for MPL, Lenah Miga as the new NWPL Chair of Chairs. However, the ANC IPC spokesperson, Kenny Morolong did not deny nor confirm the suspension allegations.

Morolong said: “Well, we cannot confirm nor deny these reports. All I can say is that we’ve got a scheduled press conference on Sunday at which we will expand on these matters.”

However, Mokgoro told Newzroom Afrika TV channel that he did not receive any communication from the IPC and he just heard these allegations from the media.

Meanwhile, the ANC Regional Secretary in the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati region, Gaolatlhwe Kgabo said the ANC IPC has no powers to suspend memberships of any member according to the party’s constitution.

“According to Rule 25.56 of the Constitution of the ANC should not be implemented out of the context of its sub-rules 25.57.4 and 25.57.5 that will constitute a fatal defective interpretation of ANC Constitution. The rule that speaks to temporary suspension has prerequisites that are clear in the Constitution both in the preamble of rule 25.56 and in rule 25.57.4 and 25.57.5.

“Critical prerequisites of suspension of membership are that a disciplinary process should be due and pending, implications being that a member shall have been served with charges,” he said.

Kgabo said this is further succinctly spelled out in rule 25.57.4 to put the charges before a member for comment and rule 25.57. 5 afford a member a 48hrs to respond to charges before putting temporary suspension to effect either through WhatsApp or SMS as it is alleged to have been the case with Mokgoro and others.

He added that the provision of rule 25.56 and 25.57 is intended to provide procedural credence and legitimacy to a process that if not delicately handled can lead to fatal prejudice of a member.

“The the implication, therefore, is that if membership of anyone is suspended without that a member being served with charges as per rule 25.57.4 and that member afforded 48hrs to respond to charges as per rule 25.57.5, such a suspension will be procedurally flawed and unconstitutional.

“If what is reported by the Dispatchlive is true that indeed Mokgoro does not know about the suspension of his membership and only hear it first from the media, then rule 25.57.4 & 5 will have been grossly undermined rendering the suspension a constitutional and legal moot point and/or act,” said Kgabo.

He said the constitution of ANC confers powers for temporary suspension of membership to PEC, PWC at the provincial level. Kgabo said even though the constitution provides for interim structures to be constituted after disbandment at regional or provincial level, there is nowhere in the entire constitution of ANC where the power to suspend is conferred to an interim structure either at regional or provincial level.

“It is for this reason that interim structures are existing at the  behest of NEC decision at a provincial level and PEC decision at a regional level, interim structures therefore derives terms of reference of their functions from the NEC for provincial interim or PEC for regional interim structure.

“The IPC, therefore, thrives on borrowed power from the NEC and in terms of their terms of reference they will have to source authority from the NEC through the SGO to transact such a delicate political transaction as suspending the Premier and public office Bearers and virtually collapse the provincial Government thereby effecting a coup de tat on their own government,” he said.

Kgabo said there is just no way anyone sane in Luthuli House will have allowed such an outrageous wild venture to ensue without IPC following due process of the constitution to the latter as provided for in rule 25.56 and 25.57 with all its sub-rules.

“Let’s say for argument sake, Mokgoro has indeed voted with opposition and that indeed constitute a travesty that may not be disputed by any ANC member, but how does IPC know since the secret ballot was expedited?

“If IPC leadership knows with surety and authority that Mokgoro and others voted with the opposition then as South Africans, we should be very worried about the credibility of our parliamentary electoral system because if it would have been so easy for IPC to know who voted how and with who in a secret parliamentary vote, then it implies that our parliament’s secret ballot system is not that secret,” said Kgabo.

He said that should be a grave concern to a nation whose constitution advocates for a free and fair electoral system where everyone shall exercise their right to vote free without any fear of intimidation including the fear of being expelled and or suspended.

“If, we can simply know as a fact how did people vote on a secret ballot in parliament nogal, how credible is our national secret ballot in the IEC? And how should we trust our national electoral system if the ruling party in the North West punts an idea that what we have known to be secret is not actually that secret?

“Is the IPC insinuation not undermining the credibility of our parliamentary electoral system? If so, is this a progressive role a ruling party should play in society as polarised as South Africa?” asked Kgabo.

He said he is not sure what the IPC will announce as they were told there will be a press conference on Sunday by the media, but he said he does not think the IPC may be that naive and stupid to make an announcement that is factional, unconstitutional or may undermine the credibility of the electoral system of the national electoral system.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

The Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality continues to be marred with fraud, corruption and maladministration allegations under the stewardship of Boitumelo Mahlangu.

This comes after the startling allegations levelled against some of the municipal officials that they paid a service provider, HT Pelatona Projects PTY (LTD) a whopping R16 million in advance for ‘raising the main from the Bloemhof WTW to Olievenfontein and elevate tank and pump station.’  

EFF regional chairperson, Tebogo Babuile said they have written a letter to the beleaguered Mahlangu as the political head requesting her to explain these allegations. He said Section 56 of the Municipal Structure Act stipulates clearly that it is the responsibility of the executive mayor to monitor the work of the administration.

“It cannot be that the municipality paid upfront payment. Whether it was an upfront payment of the entire project or payment for the material on-site, the fact remains that the municipality paid R16m to Pelatona.

“Now, they are saying the payment was for material on site. However, we went there as the EFF leadership and did our own oversight and assessment, but we can confirm that there was no material on site,” Babuile said.

He further said it is unlawful for the municipality to pay such an amount for the material set to be on-site, but the reality of the matter was that the material was not on site. Bauile said they will demand that Mahlangu give a report back to the council so that it can be able to take a resolution.

“As the EFF, we are also more interested to find out who was part of these shenanigans. We want the names of all those officials that were on duty on 16 December 2020. We also want to check whether if the municipality paid them overtime because it was on a public holiday.

“This is not the first instance. Back in December 2019, the then acting Municipal Manager, Mpho Mothibi paid off the Izwelethu Sam Force the amount of R21 million for material on site, but when we went there, the material was not on-site,” he said.

Babuile added that they are a concern as EFF because it seems it is now a norm in the district that every Municipal Manager who comes in will then pay a company millions of rands without ensuring that there is material on site.

He said if these allegations are true, they want every official who participated in these unlawful and illegal activities to be suspended with immediate effect.

“We also call on the municipality to start with internal investigation process before we even go to the law enforcement agencies,” he highlighted.

However, Gaolatlhwe Kgabo who is a Member of Mayoral Committee (MMC) responsible for infrastructure at the municipality refuted the allegations.

Kgabo said: “It is important to clarify the fact that the contractor was appointed in line with the Supply Chain Management policies of the municipality. Yes, indeed the contractor was paid R16 million, however, it was not in advance as it was reported.

“The contractor was paid R16m for the material that was on site. Basically, before the payment was processed, there was verification done just to confirm that there is material on site. Subsequent to that, we got a letter from the factory confirming that the contractor has fully paid the material.”

He said the material was just kept due to the festive break and as the result, they can safely confirm that the payment was not for the advanced payment but rather for material on site. Kgabo added that the material was currently being delivered to the site.

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