Step-aside rule stays, says Mashatile ahead of ANC's national conference

The ANC’s acting secretary-general Paul Mashatile has dismissed claims that the step-aside resolution may be scrapped at the party’s 55th national conference at Nasrec next month.

Mashatile, who is running for ANC deputy president, told journalists during a visit to the conference venue in Johannesburg south that the rule will not be discussed at least until after the election of top-six and national executive committee (NEC) members.

This means the party has effectively shut the door on those affected by the rule who had been hoping that they would get a window of opportunity for their names to be raised from the floor should the conference vote to disregard the rule. 

The rule compels those facing serious criminal charges to vacate their positions until after they have dealt with and concluded their legal battles. An amended version of the rules further bars them from contesting for positions at any of the ANC conferences. 

Several provincial executives, including those of Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal, have either called for the rule be scrapped or amended, decrying what the call its unfair application.

Some leaders from these provinces had been hoping that the rule would be discussed and eventually scrapped at the beginning of the five-day conference to give a chance to those affected to take part in the conference and stand for positions.

Mashatile said that on the first day the conference will discuss only constitutional amendments that affect elections. These include the proposal for the party to have a second deputy secretary-general as the ballot would have to be amended to include nominations for the position.

“On the first day of conference, we deal with amendments that affect elections. So if there's a proposal for a second deputy secretary-general that amendment will come on the first day of conference — not all the other amendments but that one. So it will be dealt with, if it’s adopted by conference it means the elections will then include the nomination and voting for the second deputy secretary-general,” Mashatile said.

He said that the NEC and the conference would discuss the step-aside rule only as it relates to concerns that it is not being applied fairly.  There was no issue with the rule itself, Mashatile added.

“The step-aside rule is not a problem, there has been a lot of discussion around it where people are decrying unfairness. We will look into that as the NEC to tighten the rule but generally everybody accepts that if you are alleged to have been involved in wrongdoing you must appear before the integrity commission,” he said.

Mashatile said the party’s integrity commission had the powers to ask any ANC member to step aside from their positions even if they have not been criminally charged.

“And by the way, the integrity commission may say you should step aside, even if you are not charged, because sometimes there’s confusion. People say you step aside only when you’re charged. No. If there are serious allegations that the integrity commission is of the view that they are damaging to the party, they may take a decision that you should step aside,” he said.

Mashatile said the party was on track to hold its conference from December 16 to December 20.

At least 85% of branches had successfully sat to nominate their preferred candidates, a figure way above the required 70% to constitute a national conference quorum.

Mashatile will be contesting the deputy president position against ministers Ronald Lamola, Mamoloko Kubayi, Thandi Modise, Senzo Mchunu and former deputy president Phumzile Mlamo-Ngcuka.

Mlambo-Ngcuka was this week nominated by the ANC’s veterans league to the dismay of several party leaders who questioned whether she qualified given her stint at opposition political party COPE in 2009.

Mashatile said as far as he was concerned Mlambo-Ngcuka had been a member of the ANC “from time immemorial” and was eligible to stand.

“In 2009 she left and came back, I have not really checked that but the electoral commission will cheque everything. So if there are issues they will indicate,” Mashatile said.

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