SOME of us have observed with utter dismay the new and dangerous tendency rearing its ugly head in the African National Congress in the Free State.

SOME of us have observed with utter dismay the new and dangerous tendency rearing its ugly head in the African National Congress in the Free State.

I am a card-carrying member of the organisation in Reitz in the province.

The new tendency here is to label one as a Cope member if you raise issues of corruption, nepotism and so on with the municipal manager.

They go as far as to tell you that they will deal ruthlessly with you.

We are sitting on a ticking time bomb in almost the entire Free State. Issues of contracts that are allocated to individuals and companies connected to the municipal manager and rife nepotism will soon explode in the province.

The local economic development policy is now being replaced by an external economic development policy.

We voted the ANC into power and now the same organisation that we love is resorting to apartheid tactics of intimidating people when they raise genuine concerns.

It does not mean that if the ANC is in power we should be afraid to point out the incorrect things we see and can attest to. It is not possible for a person to investigate himself. You cannot be a referee and a player at the same time.

We should not inherit the fear that the apartheid regime used to rule us with.

We will peacefully march against corruption and nepotism, irrespective of who is in power.

Mandla Elliot, Reitz