By ZOLILE MENZELWA and ZINGISA MVUMVU
Vacate Calata House or we will physically remove you.
That was the message from about 500 angry ANC members who protested outside the party’s provincial headquarters, Calata House, in King William’s Town yesterday.
The group, led by former OR Tambo regional secretary Lawrence Mambila and others, was demanding the immediate release of the Sbu Ndebele report.
The ANC heavyweight was tasked by Luthuli House to probe the violent Eastern Cape elective conference last year, when Oscar Mabuyane was voted as provincial chairman, overwhelmingly beating his former ally, Phumulo Masualle.
The voting was done after Masualle and his supporters walked out of the East London ICC following a tumultous start to the congress that included chairs being hurled.
Yesterday’s protest came after a copy of a report believed to be Ndebele’s was leaked last week.
One of the recommendations in the document is that the new provincial executive committee be disbanded and a task team be appointed and manage the party’s affairs in the interim until a new elective conference is organised within three months.
Addressing the crowd in front of Calata House, Mambila blasted the PEC, saying they were an illegitimate structure.
“We are giving the illegitimate PEC a week to vacate Calata House. Next time we come here we will physically remove them. We did not come here to meet that illegitimate PEC. We have some of our leaders in Luthuli House to represent us,” he said.
He was referring to some of the ANC leaders who were in Calata House yesterday, trying to persuade national bosses to release the report.
Despite Mambila’s threat that should the PEC fail to vacate the offices they would be removed, he added: “We will never destroy ANC property. Calata House is ours as ANC members. We did not fight even when they beat us with chairs at the conference.
“We have told them to leave Calata House. We don’t want people elected at a collapsed festival of chairs in Calata House,” he said.
One of the march conveners, Sthembele Plata from Chris Hani, said they were told the Ndebele report was ready. “We want the report tabled and sent to regions so we can reconvene the provincial conference.”
Provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi said they were unshaken by the protest. He said they were barking up the wrong tree.
“They are knocking on the wrong door because we cannot implement recommendations of the report. The report must be tabled at an NEC meeting if at all it exists and the NEC will decide whether to implement the recommendations or not. But the report does not worry us,” he said.
ANC national spokesman Pule Mabe stonewalled all questions, saying that whether the report was ready or not, it was an internal matter. — zolilem@tisoblackstar.co.za
ANC protesters tell ‘illegitimate’ PEC to step down
Vacate Calata House or we will physically remove you.
That was the message from about 500 angry ANC members who protested outside the party’s provincial headquarters, Calata House, in King William’s Town yesterday.
The group, led by former OR Tambo regional secretary Lawrence Mambila and others, was demanding the immediate release of the Sbu Ndebele report.
The ANC heavyweight was tasked by Luthuli House to probe the violent Eastern Cape elective conference last year, when Oscar Mabuyane was voted as provincial chairman, overwhelmingly beating his former ally, Phumulo Masualle.
The voting was done after Masualle and his supporters walked out of the East London ICC following a tumultous start to the congress that included chairs being hurled.
Yesterday’s protest came after a copy of a report believed to be Ndebele’s was leaked last week.
One of the recommendations in the document is that the new provincial executive committee be disbanded and a task team be appointed and manage the party’s affairs in the interim until a new elective conference is organised within three months.
Addressing the crowd in front of Calata House, Mambila blasted the PEC, saying they were an illegitimate structure.
“We are giving the illegitimate PEC a week to vacate Calata House. Next time we come here we will physically remove them. We did not come here to meet that illegitimate PEC. We have some of our leaders in Luthuli House to represent us,” he said.
He was referring to some of the ANC leaders who were in Calata House yesterday, trying to persuade national bosses to release the report.
Despite Mambila’s threat that should the PEC fail to vacate the offices they would be removed, he added: “We will never destroy ANC property. Calata House is ours as ANC members. We did not fight even when they beat us with chairs at the conference.
“We have told them to leave Calata House. We don’t want people elected at a collapsed festival of chairs in Calata House,” he said.
One of the march conveners, Sthembele Plata from Chris Hani, said they were told the Ndebele report was ready. “We want the report tabled and sent to regions so we can reconvene the provincial conference.”
Provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi said they were unshaken by the protest. He said they were barking up the wrong tree.
“They are knocking on the wrong door because we cannot implement recommendations of the report. The report must be tabled at an NEC meeting if at all it exists and the NEC will decide whether to implement the recommendations or not. But the report does not worry us,” he said.
ANC national spokesman Pule Mabe stonewalled all questions, saying that whether the report was ready or not, it was an internal matter. — zolilem@tisoblackstar.co.za
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