Johannesburg – Voting to elect a new leader of South Africa’s ruling party was to get under way late on Sunday afternoon, with the race tightening between President Cyril Ramaphosa and his former health minister Zweli Mkhize.
Ramaphosa, 70, is expected to be confirmed in the role that opens the way to being head of state, despite a damaging cash-heist scandal and vociferous internal opposition.
But observers said the race looked closer than expected, with local media reporting party delegates from several provinces shifting support to Mkhize.
“We’re seeing Ramaphosa moving from enjoying a comfortable lead, to having Mkhize right behind him. It’s up in the air right now,” independent political analyst Pearl Mncube told AFP.
More than 4 000 delegates are to cast their ballot to appoint seven top leadership roles, including party president, deputy president, chair and secretary general, at a conference near Johannesburg.
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“We are hoping this process will be smooth… and hope to have the results later today,” party spokesperson Pule Mabe told journalists. But delegates suggested to AFP that the results were likely to be declared on Monday.
The election was originally scheduled to take place on Friday, but the conference programme has been delayed.
After 28 years in power, the African National Congress (ANC), which was shaped by Nelson Mandela to spearhead the struggle to end apartheid, faces deep rifts and declining support.
An organisational report presented at the conference showed that party membership has dropped by a third over the past five years.
Its image has been stained by corruption, cronyism, nepotism and a lacklustre economic record.
Some of those divisions played out in the open at the conference that opened on Friday, with Ramaphosa heckled by some delegates before his opening address.
Much of the disturbance came from supporters of corruption-tainted former president Jacob Zuma who was forced out by Ramaphosa.
“We are saying Ramaphosa for a second term, he has done very well under very difficult circumstances in the first term,” said Elton Bantam, a delegate from the Eastern Cape province.
Dented image
Chants, shouting and celebratory dances also marked the process to confirm all nominations in the early morning, with senior party officials repeatedly calling for order.
Some delegates rolled their hands as a sign for “change” while others made the number two with their fingers in support of a second term for Ramaphosa.
Mkhize, hails from the same province as Zuma, the southeastern KwaZulu-Natal, which has the largest number of party delegates.
As health minister, the 66-year-old medical doctor was lauded for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
But his two-year spell ended abruptly when he resigned amid allegations his son benefited from a 150 million rand ($10.4 million) contract for a Covid awareness campaign. He vehemently denies any wrongdoing.
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Ramaphosa’s clean-hands image has also been dented by damning accusations he concealed a huge foreign currency cash burglary at his farm in 2020, rather than report it to the authorities.
He won a reprieve ahead of the conference when the ANC used its majority in parliament to block a possible impeachment inquiry.
He became the ANC leader in a tightly-fought 2017 race after his then boss Zuma became mired in corruption allegations vowing to be a graft-buster.
An ex-trade unionist, he fronted the historic negotiations to end apartheid in 1994 and helped draft the constitution – considered to be one of Africa’s most progressive charters.
Paul Mashatile, 61, the current party treasurer and acting secretary general, is seen as the leading contender for the role of deputy president.
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Source: AFP
Picture: Twitter/@Truthte83602973
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