Former Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has been nominated by ANC KZN as their presidential candidate Photo Biznews
KZN – The biggest voting bloc in the ANC have officially named former Health Minister Zweli Mkhize as its nominee for the ANC presidency at the December elective conference. It is the first party structure to nominate someone other than Cyril Ramaphosa for presidency.
Mkhize quit the cabinet last year after he was named in an investigation into allegations of corruption. Branch nominations over the past week shows the majority believe in Mkhize. ANC provincial Spokesperson, Mafika Mndebele, believes they can get the other provinces on board with their nominations and back Mkhize. The province did not announce a nominee for the treasure position.
“As the ANC in KZN, it’s true we’ll be supporting comrade Zweli Mkhize to be the president of the ANC. We will be supporting comrade Paul [Mashatile] to be the deputy president and also supporting comrade Stan [Mathabatha] to be the national chairperson. We will be supporting comrade Phumulo [Masualle] to be the secretary-general and comrade Nomvula Mokonyane to be the deputy secretary-general of the ANC. We are quite confident and are engaging other provinces and have humbled ourselves. We are quite confident that more provinces are going to agree with us on having Zweli Mkhize as the president of the ANC.”
Supporting Mkhize is the only plan
There is always a chance that ANC KZN will not be able to convince the other provinces to back Mkhize. However, there is no plan B according to Mndebele. Mkhize is the only one who they want to run the ANC.
“We are not changing any contender but if we are persuaded by other provinces on a particular candidate, there will be no problem with us. Our candidate as mandated by our branches is comrade Zweli Mkhize and we are quite confident he will close the conference … There is plan B. We are supporting the name of comrade Zweli Mkhize.”
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Past events won’t impact the upcoming conference
The ANC has not had an easy year. From their supporters losing confidence in them to Gwede Mantashe being booed off stage at Cosatu’s 14th elective congress. It is a sign of a party that is slowly losing all of its support. However, Mantashe being booed off stage and suggesting he will cut ties with the trade unions will have no impact on the upcoming conference, said Mndebele.
“I think it was unfortunate that comrade Gwede was booed and not given a chance to communicate the message of the ANC. Remember he was invited there but having said that the ANC KZN, we also note the challenges that the labour is facing and urge our government to act with speed in dealing with those particular matters. We don’t believe these issues are related to the National Conference of the ANC. We believe we are going to have a robust, peaceful conference that shall also take forward the task of renewing the ANC and making the ANC a better instrument in championing the interest of the people.”
Mkhize nominated as president of the ANC but what does it mean for Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
Dlamini-Zuma has openly criticised the ANC and how the party has been run. Her name was also put forth but ultimately, she lost out to Mkhize. She was supported by former president Jacob Zuma. Even though she lost out, Mndebele is certain she will still be supported by the ANC.
“We haven’t said that the province doesn’t support Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as a leader of the ANC or as part of the leadership of the ANC. Our preference is that comrade Mkhize should be the president. She can still get the support of the ANC. Our support of Dr Zweli Mkhize does not in any way mean that we are now excluding others or not recognizing others as leaders. We do recognize [them] but we are saying the current condition requires someone like Zweli Mkhize to take us forward.”
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There will be no surprises at the December elective conference
The ANC’s past conferences have not gone by without something going wrong. One can almost expect something to go wrong at the December elective conference. However, Mndebele is confident things will go smoothly and according to plan.
“We are not [expecting any surprises] and we are quite confident. Our branches are speaking throughout the country. We believe that in two- or three-weeks’ time the entire country will be able to see that we are not just making these calls to tick a box but to amass sufficient and enough support.”
Mndebele acknowledged the ANC has a responsibility to pick the right leader. He believes having Mkhize as the president is a way for the ANC to renew itself. The ANC has their work cut out for them if they are to achieve such. There are concerns that should the ANC fail to improve; they could find themselves losing the elections come 2024.
