MASUALLE FOR PREMIER

ONLY President Jacob Zuma stands between Phumulo Masualle and the province’s highest political office as Eastern Cape’s sixth premier.

Yesterday the ANC’s provincial executive committee (PEC) unanimously nominated Masualle, the party’s chairman and Finance MEC, as its only candidate for the position.

The premiership became vacant after last week’s national and provincial elections.

“You can be number one on the list, but that does not guarantee that you will be premier. Your placement in the list does not necessarily mean that you have to be recommended as premier or a cabinet member. List conferences are not deployment committees,” Mabuyane explained.

Thirty-one of the 35 members of the PEC attended the meeting.

They were joined by regional chairs and secretaries, as well as provincial chairs and secretaries of the party’s leagues.

According to ANC rules only the president can appoint premiers.

All provinces have until Friday to submit names to the party’s national headquarters at Luthuli House.

On Sunday leaders from these provinces are expected to make presentations to the party national officials on their preferred candidates.

“We are confident and trust that it won’t be easy for him to choose someone else when the organisation is fully behind one name.

“He is the president of the ANC. He won’t have a totally different view to his provincial counterparts because he has visited this province several times and understands our challenges,” said Mabuyane.

The decision to recommend Masualle came amid rumours of a strong lobby to convince Qoboshiyane to make himself available for the position.

Sources within the organisation had claimed that so strong was the lobby that the provincial office even approached asking him to withdraw from the race.

But Qoboshiyane has dismissed these claims. He said he was the first person, while chairman of the ANCYL, to lobby for the ANC provincial chairman to be be given the job as the premier.

“There was no lobby at all. What has happened in the PEC today is what I called for back in 2009.

He said he was just as clear back then about Masualle being the premier as he was now. “The PEC has spoken,” said Qoboshiyane.

Mabuyane said no one was approached to withdraw and Qoboshiyane had distanced himself from the rumour.

“I suspect these were individuals who had a certain agenda, hoping that if indeed he became premier then their chances of having an ear for their own selfish interests stood on good ground.

“Mlibo was never part of those gatherings,” said Mabuyane.

Masualle’s announcement comes amid the ANC and Eastern Cape government’s refusal to explain how R250000 from the Mandela burial budget was deposited into the Finance MEC’s private bank account.

While he confirmed the deposit to the Dispatch, he insists the transaction was done without his approval and was reversed at his insistence five days later. He is yet to explain how it all happened and why.

His nomination is a culmination of years of lobbying by his supporters in the province. Joe Gqabi was the first region to recommend Masualle’s name as premier and was this week followed by Amathole region.