Carl Niehaus has been expelled from the ANC for misconduct.

The findings of the national disciplinary committee (NDC), which were widely circulated, state that Niehaus was found guilty on six counts of misconduct for contravening rule 25 of the ANC's constitution.

Niehaus was charged for utterances he made in July 2021 outside the home of former president Jacob Zuma where he organised a rally and made statements to the media. 

ANC disciplinary committee chairperson Ralph Mgijima wrote that it was alleged some of the statements Niehaus made were devoid of any truth, patently false and that Niehaus deliberately put such false information into the public domain to cause confusion and disunity in the ANC. It brought the ANC into disrepute.

"The NDC is of the view that the charges for which the charged member has been found guilty are very serious. As such, the charged member’s plea that he be sanctioned with a reprimand, if found guilty, is wholly inappropriate.

"The utterances of the charged member were made at a time when the circumstances surrounding the arrest and subsequent committal to prison of former president Zuma was very volatile as evidenced by the subsequent riots which took place in KwaZulu-Natal and parts of Gauteng and resultant loss of life and limb and damage to and loss of property," Mgijima wrote.

He said that Niehaus showed no remorse and persisted with his view that the ANC was acting in violation of its constitution and his rights by disciplining him.

Mgijima added that despite Niehaus's long history within the ANC and having served time in prison for his political beliefs, he, like all other members of the ANC, was bound by the party's code of conduct.

Mathews Phosa, who represented Niehaus during the hearings, recommended a five-year suspension which was rejected.

"The failure of the charged member to show any remorse for his misconduct convinced the NDC that he was not capable of being rehabilitated.

"The charged member is expelled from the ANC," Mgijima found.