Senior Eastern Cape ANC leaders who are touted to become members of parliament or the Bhisho legislature – if the party wins enough votes during the 2019 election – were vetted at the city hall in East London on Thursday.
ANC provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi said the party’s national vetting committee members were going to grill all the candidates, who have since accepted being nominated into the ANC’s lists.
The lists are those of members of the national assembly, the national council of provinces and the Bhisho legislature.
This comes as the party is trying to ensure it redeems its compromised integrity following its decision to exclude anyone from its list of candidates if he or she has in any way “brought the party into disrepute”.
The party has a standing policy not to deploy anyone who has been been found guilty in a court of law for any criminality.
The party has also been calling on its members to voluntarily withdraw from any deployment if they are facing charges.
Ngcukayitobi said the sole purpose of the vetting committee is to “allow members to make declarations”.
“It is important that we vet every candidate who accepts nomination.”
The Dispatch has seen a list of at least 87 ANC candidates, including AbaThembu traditional leader Bhovulengwe Mtirara, who were asked to e-mail the outstanding copies of their identity documents.
At the meeting on Thursday, more than 200 candidates were also asked to sign acceptance of nomination forms.
“Kindly note that this meeting is compulsory. All list candidates are expected to attend and no apologies will be accepted,” said Ngcukayitobi.
This is preparation for this weekend’s national executive committee meeting where the 80-member committee is expected to scrutinise the report of the national list committee.
In the Eastern Cape, two ANC members have officially submitted letters complaining that they have been excluded from the list.
The members were of the view that they secured enough votes at branch level to have made it into the final nomination lists, but did not.
Ngcukayitobi confirmed receiving the two complaints.
“We have since clarified the ANC process and I can safely say this issue has been resolved.
“All we are waiting for is for the national office to assess the list and check whether the gender quota has been met, and the 20% youth quota has been adhere to,” he added...