KZN premier explains why Zandile Gumede was moved to provincial legislature

Durban – KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala has revealed that tensions at the eThekwini Municipality had forced the ANC to redeploy controversial former mayor Zandile Gumede to the provincial legislature to ease the situation in the council.

Zikalala made the revelation on Friday when he was facing questions during his virtual engagement with the South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef).

Although there were a number of issues raised, Gumede’s redeployment dominated the discussion as this happened while she was facing corruption charges related to multimillion-rand solid waste tender.

Zikalala said the fact that Gumede continued to be the councillor under new Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda after she was demoted created an unhealthy situation.

“Firstly she is charged, but people who are expected to participate in that case as either charged with her or even possible witnesses are in the municipality.

“Secondly she is the councillor having been the mayor, and you got now a new mayor and that creates a situation, which is unhealthy,” said Zikalala.

He said it was “always better” when a person who had been removed from a leadership position either exited or got another assignment somewhere else.

“Now the ANC, to solve that particular problem, decided that we must take her to the legislature, not that she is deployed in an executive position in the legislature.

“The society is correct in saying this is solving one problem by another problem as it is expected that when the person is charged, that person is removed,” he said.

He said the ANC nationally was still working on a clear guideline on whether its deployees who were facing criminal charges should either be totally removed from the state institutions or be withdrawn from the executive but remain “an ordinary member in the council or in the legislature”.

“We acknowledge that it is the situation that is quite difficult to manage. It is solving one problem with another problem because you remove her from being an ordinary councillor, and others would think that you are promoting her if you make her a member of the legislature; in essence it is not because she is not going to the executive.

“Others would say what about the ANC? Should the ANC people who are charged step down from the position or not?

“So those are issues that the national leadership is trying to finalise, and we would want to finalise those issues as soon as possible,” he said.

He said he was not disagreeing with ANC provincial chairperson Nhlakanipho Ntombela, who said part of sending Gumede to Parliament was to stabilise the eThekwini Region, where her supporters were aggrieved by her removal as the mayor.

“As we stabilise the municipality, also the ANC needs to be stabilised,” he said.

Zikalala said ANC deputy chairperson Mike Mabuyakhulu, who is also charged with fraud and corruption in relation to the 2012 North Sea Jazz Festival, had made it easy for the party by requesting not to be deployed to government until he finalised the case.

“He presented that to the officials. We thanked him for that and that is what we want to appreciate even now,” he said.

He said fighting corruption was part of fighting for building a developmental state with principle and ethical values, and which is also responsible and caring.

However, he said the negative media reports suggested that “it means that we are not yet there”.

“We are committed to work in addressing the challenges that we face in the capacity of the state but also in fighting corruption,” he said.

He said there were still challenges of corruption, factionalism and dishonesty that threaten goals and the support of the ANC.

“We see the use of money in conferences of the ANC, we see the leadership weaknesses where the integrity of the leadership will be at stake given the fact that some will be compromised when it comes to managing the state resources and conflict of interest,” he said.

He said the OR Tambo School of Leadership was created to focus on the renewal of the ANC by renewing the party’s cadreship so that it was dedicated to serve the people.

“The leadership of the ANC should ensure that it embraces that renewal at a level of political education so that they will restore consciousness and integrity.

“We must renew the membership of the ANC, so that it should not just be easy to join the ANC for people who come in the ANC for their own reasons and interests,” he said.

Political Bureau