The ANC postponed the launch of its provincial election manifesto yesterday over fears of violence.
The African National Congress in the province will meet today to discuss infighting over its candidate lists which led to the postponement of its manifesto launch in Khayelitsha.
The launch, meant to take place at the Khayelitsha Stadium with the ruling party’s Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa as the main speaker, was stopped at the last minute on Friday afternoon.
The initial reason given was that Ramaphosa would be unavailable as he was expected to be out of the country.
But the story soon changed, and the party’s Provincial Executive Committee spokesperson, Jubu Mfusi, admitted that the postponement was due to protests from dissatisfied ANC members.
Mfusi explained: “It was decided that a postponement was necessary after it was clear that a number of members were dissatisfied with the candidates’ nomination process.
“We need to sort out these issues within the party before we address the public.”
Last week, a number of protests took place in several wards in Khayelitsha where residents were unhappy with the candidates submitted to the Independent Electoral Commission ahead of the August 3 polls.
Cops were also called in to the party’s headquarters at Sahara House in the CBD on Thursday, where Deputy Secretary Thandi Manikivana and Administrator Mvusi Mdala were reportedly held hostage by a group of disgruntled members.
Mfusi told the Daily Voice today’s meeting will be to try and resolve these issues.
“We will meet to take stock and see how we can solve the issues and also discuss a suitable new date for the manifesto launch,” he says.
The leader of the Democratic Alliance, Patricia de Lille, says the postponement and the fact that the ANC was yet to reveal its Cape Town mayoral candidate is indicative of bigger problems within the ANC.
“If the ANC can’t put together a launch, they can’t be trusted to govern a city like Cape Town,” she tells the Daily Voice.
“They have accepted that they can’t win so they know that announcing [the mayoral candidate] won’t make much of a difference.”