Cape Town – The African National Congress (ANC’s top six is reportedly set to decide the fate of former social development minister Bathabile Dlamini, who was found guilty of perjury by the Johannesburg magistrate’s court on March 2.
Reports indicated that party president Cyril Ramaphosa would be part of the leaders to decide Dlamini’s fate.
Dlamini remains the president of the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL), despite the writing being on the wall regarding the ANC’s resolution on members facing criminal charges.
According to News24, Dlamini was found guilty of perjury by Magistrate Betty Khumalo for lying under oath during a 2017 inquiry into the social grants debacle at the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) that saw millions of grant beneficiaries unsure if they would receive their money.
During a court hearing, Dlamini’s lawyer Tshepiso Mphahlane reportedly pleaded with the magistrate’s court to be “lenient” on his client, saying she was a single mother who had to take care of her children along with her extended family.
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The State, on the other hand, called for a hefty fine or even a harsh sentence against her, according to IOL.
Dlamini will be back in court on April 1 for sentencing.
Times Live reported on Monday that ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile announced that the party’s highest decision-making body, the national executive committee (NEC), had resorted to tasking the top six to decide what to do about Dlamini’s conviction.
The report said that pressure had been mounting on the party’s officials to sack Dlamini in line with the party’s step-aside resolution — which stipulated that members indicted by a court of law should step aside from all party positions.
Mashatile denied allegations that the party was treating Dlamini’s case as special.
“There are some matters that should be handled differently,” the report quoted Mashatile as saying.
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Picture: Twitter/@coalition2024
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
