By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The integrity commission report on the Phala Phala scandal will now be tabled as part of the organisational report that’s will be tabled before the party’s 55th national elective conference which starts on 16 -20 December.
The ANC national spokesperson Pule Mabe has confirmed the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) has resolved that report will be tabled at the conference, this after a day-long meeting at Nasrec, south of Johannesburg.
“We can confirm to you that the NEC resolved that, and consistent with the resolution of conference, the report of the integrity commission would be included as part of the organisational report,” said Mabe.
Mabe added that the NEC was not abdicating its authority to delegates but had “fully concluded its work” by signing off on the outstanding report of the commission to be tabled as part of the organisational report.
ANC deputy president David Mabuza will table it as part of the organisational report before the conference, which traditionally has been the duty of the ANC secretary-general but Ace Magashule is under suspension while his deputy Jessie Duarte died in July.
After its tabling, the organisational report is open to a plenary session where the more than 4,000 delegates can raise their hands and make inputs.
Ramaphosa is fighting for his political future after a parliamentary independent panel concluded that he had may have committed a serious violation of the constitution and anti-corruption laws
This coming Tuesday, the National Assembly will debate and vote on the Section 89 panel report, with all 400 MPs expected to be at the sitting.
Some ANC MPs are expected to defy the ruling party’s orders.
If the National Assembly adopts the report, a Section 89 Committee will then be established and Ramaphosa will be subjected to impeachment proceedings.
Meanwhile ANC presidential hopeful Zweli Mkhize said some NEC officials were shut down from expressing their views on the Phala Phala matter.
“I have been critical on how we discussed the matter because not all of us were able to speak. Ordinarily we speak everything on site and get a summary resolution that contains all views of the people who have been participating and then of course after we kept quite because of all our views [have been recorded].
“This time around this is not how it happened and we have been objecting to the chairperson [of the ANC Gwede Mantashe] prematurely closing the meeting and muzzled a number of members. I believe that’s not a right way to run the organisation because it begins to give a resolution that might be misleading to the public,” he said.
Mkhize further said he was of the view that Ramaphosa should seek to clear his name through the parliamentary process.