Africa-Press – South-Africa. After multiple tense meetings characterised by infighting within President Cyril Ramaphosa’s CR22 caucus, the grouping has come up with a list of leaders to be his running mates.
On Wednesday, the caucus confirmed that it stood by Cabinet minister Senzo Mchunu as the candidate to be Ramaphosa’s deputy, despite several of Ramaphosa’s allies putting their hand up for the position.
The slate supported by the caucus, which is made up of ANC national executive committee (NEC) members who are Ramaphosa’s firm lieutenants, caused ructions among his supporters.
The final line-up ditched former ANC KwaZulu-Natal secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli, who has a firm grip on the position of secretary-general.
But, a personal grudge between Mchunu and Ntuli and a push to appease all ANC provincial blocs, led to the caucus opting to support Cabinet minister Fikile Mbalula for the secretary-general position. Mchunu hails from KwaZulu-Natal.
News24 understands that a rule by the ANC elections committee, led by Kgalema Motlanthe, that two women ought to be in the ANC top six pushed the caucus to punt Febe Potgieter-Gqubule as its candidate for the deputy secretary-general position and Gwen Ramokgopa as treasurer-general.
An initial push to support Tina Joemat-Pettersson fell through after some back and forth.
The latest list is expected to set the tone for Ramaphosa’s campaign as nomination processes will conclude by the end of the month.
But the slate is facing vehement opposition internally among Ramaphosa allies in provincial ANC structures, who claimed that their views were not taken into account.
The ANC in Limpopo agreed to support Ramaphosa for a second term on the proviso that its chairperson Stanley Mathabatha would be elected as ANC national chairperson.
The ANC in the Eastern Cape pushed Premier Oscar Mabuyane as deputy president and was said to be firmly against a plan to catapult Mchunu as Ramaphosa’s running mate.
Mchunu’s candidacy threatens to rule out several others who are loyal to Ramaphosa and who have indicated their willingness to contest for the deputy presidency at the ANC’s December conference, including Ronald Lamola, Mmamoloko Kubayi and Mabuyane.
The front runner for the position, however, remains ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile, with incumbent deputy president David Mabuza hopeful of remaining in that position.
“What the CR22 caucus wants is not necessarily what Ramaphosa wants,” said a Ramaphosa ally and NEC member.
However, another NEC member, who is in the running for a top six position, said if Ramaphosa supported the latest line-up from his supporters “it will cause cracks in his campaign”.
Ramaphosa’s political advisor, Bejani Chauke, was excluded by the CR22 caucus despite him having led Ramaphosa’s efforts to be elected in 2017.
He is in the running for the treasurer-general position. Chauke told News24 he was not bothered by his exclusion from the CR22 line-up.
Chauke said:
At least two other ANC NEC members who spoke to News24 questioned whether Mchunu and Mbalula enjoyed “ground support” in terms of nominations from ANC branches.
Mchunu confirmed he was in the running for the ANC deputy presidency after being approached by “several branches.”
However, he denied assertions that the interfactional jostling by Ramaphosa’s allies would weaken the president’s bid for a second term as party president.
Mbalula told News24 he had long been engaged to contest the position of secretary-general but would prefer to discuss whether he would accept the nomination in November “when there’s a clearer picture”.
“I think it’s still early days. Nominations will tell a different story going forward,” Mbalula said when asked whether he would accept a nomination for the secretary-general position.
He has been one of the most vocal NEC members to have publicly lobbied for a second term for Ramaphosa.
In 2012, Mbalula failed in his bid to secure the secretary-general position on a ticket that opposed then-president Jacob Zuma.
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