The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) is facing claims of an internal conspiracy, with a KwaZulu-Natal leader alleging that insiders deliberately tampered with candidate lists to destabilise the party before the elections.
Speaking exclusively and anonymously to The National, the leader said that after he and his colleagues observed a pattern of administrative problems facing the party, they came to believe a plot to destroy the organisation was being hatched internally.
He cited the manipulation of the eThekwini candidate list for the November 4 local government elections as a possible indication of this plot, as the list submitted by the provincial office was not the same as the one that was sent to the Electoral Commission of South Africa by the party’s national office.
“We have been observing this pattern where, whenever there is an official programme, a parallel programme emerges to counter it. I am fully aware of the list submitted by the provincial secretary, which was a product of community participation,” said the leader, who declined to be named as he is not authorised to speak on party matters.
“However, when you hear that the final list submitted had names of people who did not even contest as ward candidates, you begin to conclude that surely that was a parallel programme.”
He argued that since the province submitted the list the day before the August 28 deadline, submitting the wrong list could not simply be a mistake.
The list issue has been disruptive to the MKP’s election campaign in eThekwini. The issue is significant as the latest Ipsos survey showed that the party was polling at 55% support in the metro.
The National has previously reported that 36 candidates claim their names were removed from the MKP candidate list for eThekwini and replaced with other names. They are demanding the resignation of the “parachuted” candidates before the elections.
In response to the allegations, MKP president Jacob Zuma dissolved the party’s Presidential Task Team and ordered an investigation. The party’s former mayoral candidate for eThekwini, Zandile Hlophe-Mkhwanazi, was also removed from the National Party Liaison Committee, alongside fellow committee member Sibonelo Maphumulo.
However, the disgruntled members have not been appeased by the announcement of an investigation.
Some of them stormed a prayer meeting last week and demanded answers from Zuma, who ordered security to remove them.
The source who spoke to The National questioned the issue of the list manipulation investigation being held in the party’s secretary-general’s office, given that the alleged tampering could possibly have occurred in that very office.
Another concern cited by the leader was the appointment and immediate disbandment of the special presidential and presidential task teams, saying it was suspicious that, instead of bringing unity, the appointment of these teams caused division within the party.
The problem of parallel structures within the party was also raised by a member of the “Do or Die” group.
The group comprises members of the MK Military Veterans Association who sided with Zuma while he was at odds with the ANC and later were part of the founding of the MKP.
The group said that while it was assigned to conduct vetting of members, it realised that the same work was being carried out by other people without its knowledge.
One of the group’s members, who also declined to be named for fear of reprisals, stated that from 2023 until a few months ago, Zuma was consulting them with regard to all operations of the party. However, he said things had changed and Zuma was no longer accessible.
Claims of a plot are also contained in an internal report penned by a senior Member of Parliament to Zuma earlier this year. The report warned of a systemic plan to weaken the party financially and politically ahead of the local government elections.
It is understood that Zuma used the report to appoint an independent forensic firm to investigate financial mismanagement. The report, which The National has seen, did find that there was mismanagement of funds.
MKP Member of Parliament Pumlani Kubukeli, who was tasked with opening a case against individuals cited in the report, was expelled from the party after opening the case with police. He has successfully challenged his expulsion along with Dr Khanyisile Litchfield-Tshabalala in the Western Cape High Court.
In a judgment on Friday setting aside their expulsions, Judge Daniel Thulare directed that the matter be referred back to Zuma to be dealt with following the correct rules and procedures.
Asked about the allegation of a plot seeking to destabilise the organisation, the party’s national spokesperson, Sifiso Mahlangu, said the MKP was neither aware of nor in possession of any credible information substantiating these allegations, and therefore had no intention of lending legitimacy to conjecture by treating it as an established fact.
Weighing in on the matter, political analyst Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast played down the third-hand suggestion, saying that while it could not be ruled out, Zuma’s leadership style left a lot to be desired.
He argued that Zuma’s centralisation of power could be the main contributing factor to the instability within the party.
“When all decisions are taken by one person in an organisation of this magnitude, you are likely to have these problems. Chopping and changing people as he does has nothing to do with a third force,” Breakfast argued.
willem.phungula@nationalmg.co.za