Africa-Press – South-Africa. The ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) has made a bold proposal for the party to have two deputy presidents and two deputy secretary-generals (DSGs).
This would increase the number of national officials from the current top six to eight.
Accompanying the call for the increase in top officials was a call for 50% to be women, in line with the party’s gender parity policy.
The proposal for two deputy presidents is not a new phenomenon. In 2017, former president Jacob Zuma also made the call for two deputy presidents.
ANC policy conference: Rebellion against Ramaphosa neutralised
At the time, an under pressure Zuma, who was set to face off with Cyril Ramaphosa, suggested the losing contender for the party presidency, should it be a two-horse race, would then automatically become deputy president.
He proposed that the second deputy president position follow the present procedure, which involves nomination from branches and then voted on by delegates at the elective conference.
Speaking to News24 on Sunday, newly appointed ANCWL national coordinator, Maropene Ramokgopa, confirmed that proposals for possible constitutional amendments to have two DSGs and deputy presidents had been made and had received “favourable support”.
“We have actually made a submission in commissions, as well as in the plenary, that we do what the office bearers of the movement, not only in the national top six, but in provinces and regions, should have 50% parity.
“We are furthermore saying that we should actually adopt policies or rules that are being implemented in countries, like Namibia, whereby they say that, if the president or a chairperson [is a man], the deputy or vice chairperson should automatically be a woman,” she said.
Ramokgopa added that they would support the proposal to have two DSGs.
“We would not be sad if we had two deputy presidents, so we do believe that the issue of officials need to be broadened, so that we could be able to task many people and have them to be accountable to us, with specific roles that are given to them in different offices,” said Ramokgopa.
She explained that the proposal would not be adopted at the policy conference, but she believed it would be “taken to the December conference for consideration”.
“Here we are making recommendations to the conference, but because people who are discussing here are actually delegates and members of branches, it means that they will also be there at the conference. When we agree here, we do expect that it will also be forwarded to branches and further refined… then, when we go to conference, it will be definitely be adopted,” she said.
When the proposal was raised by Zuma in 2017, it failed to gain traction, and the suggestion was not adopted.
This time, the proposal may be more favourable as the ANC seeks to try and ensure that it has a 50% gender parity in its top leadership.
Speaking at the funeral of the late ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte, Ramaphosa said to honour her legacy the party should meet the 50% gender parity goal.
Ramokgopa said the increase in top officials could also reduce factionalism, if different slates were all accommodated in the leadership.
She praised the manner in which the policy conference had unfolded, saying deliberations demonstrated that the party was moving from being “inward-facing to being outward-facing”.
“It is very clear that the policies that are being suggested and the discussions, therefore, are saying that the ANC needs to start looking outwards more than inwards, if it had to continue to represent the plight of the people in society, which is exactly the objective of why it was starting in the beginning,” said Ramokgopa.
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