By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Fikile Mbalula served Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma with court papers over her vote-buying claims.
This follows Dlamini-Zuma’s remarks made during a recent appearance on the African Renaissance Podcast.
She alleged that illicit monetary influence extensively manipulated executive outcomes during major party elections.
Specifically, Dlamini-Zuma accused Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola and Mbalula of participating in vote-buying during the ANC’s fifty-fourth National Conference in 2017.
Furthermore, she went on to accuse Mbalula of openly “dishing out money” at a clinic facility during the fifty-fifth National Conference in 2022 to secure his position.
Earlier this month, Mbalula announced legal action against Dlamini-Zuma and confirmed that he will also refer the matter to the ANC Integrity Commission to clear his name.
Since then, Dlamini-Zuma has issued a formal retraction of her comments about Lamola.
However, she has not issued a similar retraction to comments made about Mbalula and instead doubled down on her concerns regarding financial corruption in the party.
“I stand by my statements and the substance of the argument raised,” she asserted. “Out of respect for the court, I will not argue the merits of the case through public statements as the matter will now be fully ventilated in court.”
Dlamini-Zuma said her criticism was rooted in her long-standing commitment to the ANC rather than an attempt to undermine the organisation.
“I have devoted my life to the struggle and the African National Congress and remain committed to its unity and renewal,” she said.
She argued that confronting difficult issues was necessary if the governing party was to restore its organisational integrity.
“It is precisely because of this commitment that I believe we must speak honestly about the challenges facing our movement,” she said.
While the defamation case will now be determined through the courts, Dlamini-Zuma maintained that the broader political question surrounding money in ANC leadership contests could not be settled through litigation.
In the ANC, it is generally accepted that candidates buy votes or bribe conference delegates at all levels. The Integrity Committee of the ANC complained in its submissions to the National General Council (NGC) of the ANC that members have a very weak sense of morality; they seem unable to distinguish between wrong and right.
Meanwhile the ANC NEC has concluded its Special Meeting, ratifying a balanced candidate list ahead of IEC submission deadline on Friday, 27 August 2026.
The NEC met at Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg, East of Johannesburg.
The ANC heads into the elections after years of declining electoral – it won 62% of the vote in 2011, 53.9% in 2016 and 47.5% in 2021. A recent Social Research Foundation poll put the ANC at 34% nationally, ahead of the DA with 27%, but the ANC was trailing the DA in Gauteng’s three metros.