Internal tensions and disagreements over the step-aside rule have now begun to take the stage at the African National Congress (ANC) policy conference in Nasrec, Johannesburg.
The party’s biggest province KwaZulu-Natal is leading is leading the charge to try and get the step-aside rule to be completely scrapped. Limpopo, which is a province which pledged its support to President Cyril Ramaphosa, is in support of the complete removal of the step-aside rule.
According to the newly elected ANC KZN provincial leadership, led by chairperson Siboniso Duma, who is aligned with the pro-Jacob Zuma faction known as RET Taliban, argues that the policy is causing divisions within the ruling party as there are perceptions that the rule is being used to purge those who are opposed to those who are in support of Ramaphosa’s faction.
The step-aside rule which was adopted at the ANC’s 2017 elective conference, said all those who have been criminally charged by the court of law should step-aside until the matter has been finalised. Those who refuse to step aside would have to face the party’s disciplinary committee and if found guilty face suspension.
In defence of the ANC’s step-aside policy, Ramaphosa’s ally Mpumalanga chairperson Mandla Ndlovu said if the party scraps the policy, it will be “scrapping itself out of government”. Msibi said the province argued that the ANC could not reverse its decision on the step-aside rule.
“Those who call for the scrapping of step-aside, they must know we will be scrapping ourselves out of government,” said Msibi.
Source: News24, IOL, Eyewitness News, The Citizen, image from Twitter