ANC representatives who supported Morocco's candidature to be hauled over coals
ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule has come out guns blazing against mayors who disobeyed his instruction to reject Morocco's candidacy for chair of the Congress of the United Cities and Local Government (UCLG).
The congress was held in Durban last week.
According to Magashule, ANC members who attended the meeting ignored his order - and they should now be disciplined.
In a strongly-worded statement, Magashule accuses "individual members" of the ANC who took part in the UCLG congress of "insubordination".
"These individual ANC members have done so despite having been instructed by the secretary-general of the ANC, who is the administrative custodian and day-to-day guardian of the (party's) national conference resolutions and policy positions of the ANC, NOT (sic) to support Morocco's candidature," said Magashule in a written media statement.
"This instruction of the secretary-general of the ANC, was also backed up by a similar instruction from the NEC sub-committee for international relations, which is chaired by comrade Lindi Zulu.
"The ANC herewith formally distances itself from the ill-disciplined actions of some individual members of our organisation, who acted without any mandate from the ANC.
"For the record it must be stated that the ANC at no stage in any manner whatsoever supported, or considered supporting, the candidature of Morocco."
Magashule said the ANC, once again, reiterates it's principled support for the people of the Western Sahara, and reaffirms its call to Morocco to immediately end its illegal and brutal occupation of the Western Sahara.
He said the the individual members of the ANC who have disregarded the formal policy position of the ruling party, as informed by the relevant resolution of the party's 54th national conference, as well as the subsequent instruction in line with that resolution from the secretary-general of the ANC, will be subjected to disciplinary action by the ANC.
"The conduct of the ANC as an organisation, and those of our members who are delegated to represent us at forums and meetings, must always be beyond reproach, principled and informed by our formal policy positions. This must be true, both nationally and internationally.
"The principle of responsible and disciplined representation is sacrosanct because the ANC is a democratic organisation that is guided by democratic centralism. The collective decision making of our highest decision-making structures and conferences is enshrined in the constitution of the ANC," Magashule said.
"Any deviation by any individual, or minority of individuals, from the principle of democratic centalism should be seen in a very serious light, and ought to be subject to disciplinary action."