By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) Secretary-General, Fikile Mbalula says the party has released the Cadre deployment records in the interest of the public.
Mbalula addressed the party’s Mayihlome Mini-Rally in Umsinga, Inkhosi Bambhatha Region in a build-up to the Manifesto launch.
He called upon all political parties, including the Democratic Alliance, to do likewise.
Mbalula said, the ANC will emerge victorious come the 29th of May and on Saturday the 24th of February, they will all receive their line of march from President Cyril Ramaphosa as they build-up towards victory.
Despite the party holding events in the middle of the week and during working hours – it’s managed to attract thousands of supporters.
The ANC is facing an uphill battle in KZN with newcomer Umkhonto We Sizwe (MK Party) – which is backed by its former president Jacob Zuma – and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) gaining traction and threatening its electoral fortunes.
Polls have suggested the governing party will drop to below 50% when the country goes to elections soon.
The arrival of the ANC’s national leadership in KZN this week is best described as a power play, as its leaders attract throngs of supporters everywhere they go.
Meanwhile the party has welcomed the judgment of the High Court that dismissed DA’s application to have its cadre deployment policy declared invalid and unconstitutional.
The Party’s National Spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri says, “It is the ANC’s view that the practice of cadre deployment should not be inconsistent with principles of fairness, transparency and merit in the employment of individuals to public entities.”
“Cadre deployment cannot be faulted in principle. In pursuit of building a united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous society, the ANC will continue implementing its cadre deployment policy in our deployment strategy to ensure that individuals with impressive qualifications, experience and credentials are deployed to build a better life for all South Africans.”
The records have revealed how the ANC’s deployment committee consulted with ministers, ultimately delaying progress on the appointment of the chief executive officers of state owned companies, Eskom and the SAA.
The records also revealed how there were significant delays in the process of appointing the CEOs, which the minutes said were due to compliance issues in 2018.
In minutes of a deployment committee meeting held at the ANC’s headquarters, Luthuli House on the 10th floor in March 2018, records show that Eskom needed a CEO and the deployment committee agreed to support the motion.
In both instances, the deployment of the CEOs was not ratified.
Public records show that Andre De Ruyter was eventually appointed Eskom CEO in December 2019, while at SAA, Vuyani Jarana resigned in June 2019 due to uncertainty about funding and how slow decision making processes were delaying the airline’s turnaround strategy.
The records also showed that in November 2020, the deployment committee met again to discussion board appointments at both SAA and Eskom.
The minutes further reveal that the Eskom Interim Board needed to be regularized and properly appointed within the existing rules of the state.
The minutes show that the committee convened their meeting via Zoom call on November 30 to discuss the matter.
DA MP Leon Schreiber, said the records reveal how the cadre deployment committee contributed to the downfall of SAA and Eskom.
The records consist of meeting minutes, email correspondence, WhatsApp conversations, CVs, and ANC’s cadre deployment policies dating from 2018.
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