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ANC KZN conference delayed as regions hold delegates back in hotels

Nomazima Nkosi Senior reporter
ANC provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli had initially committed that conference would start at 10am on Friday but by 1.30pm the meeting had not yet kicked off.
ANC provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli had initially committed that conference would start at 10am on Friday but by 1.30pm the meeting had not yet kicked off.
Image: Nomazima Nkosi

Day one of the ANC KwaZulu-Natal conference was hit with delays after regions held their members back from registering on Friday.

This was according to KZN provincial spokesperson Nhlakanipho Ntombela who commented on delays that characterised the start of the provincial conference.

ANC provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli had initially committed that conference would start at 10am on Friday but by 1.30pm the meeting had not yet kicked off.

Speaking earlier on Friday, half an hour after conference should have begun, Ntombela blamed regions for the delay.

“Seemingly the delegates were delayed where they were sleeping. You can ask the regions why they’re holding delegates in the hotels. We’re waiting for delegates to come and collect their tags and go to the conference facility.

"Based on our systems, we’re ready to start at any time but we’re waiting on regions. It’s something I can’t explain why they’re holding [them] in hotels or whether they’re wrapping up caucuses."

Meanwhile Sihle Zikalala, who is seeking re-election for a second term as provincial chairperson, suffered a blow when KZN’s biggest region, eThekwini, endorsed his opponent Siboniso Duma as chairperson.

While regions were still held up in caucus for most of Friday morning, a group of ANC members protested outside the Olive Convention Centre demanding that branch delegates from their ward be removed from participating in the provincial conference.

Musa Hlongwana from ward 91 in eThekwini region said they as a group had a problem with how things were done in the region. He said his branch had not convened a proper branch general meeting.

“We’re not part of conference. Comrades took the ward and held a BGM in their homes and the rest of us were waiting for the BGM to convene, waiting on ANC processes to unfold.

“We tried by all means to follow ANC processes and we informed the region, province and even national and told them of our challenge but we’re not attended to.

“Our branch was not in good standing but they just pointed us to Pinetown and told us that’s where the BGM was held,” Hlongwana said.

ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile is expected to open conference when it eventually starts.

PODCAST | A province run by personal politics - what to expect from the ANC KZN conference


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