The ANC in eThekwini said it was not bothered by the acquisition of ‘politically dormant’ Zandile Gumede by Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), despite popular sentiment being that the former Durban mayor could be their trump card in the upcoming local government elections.
Since 1996, Durban’s mayoral chain has been worn by ANC aligned members.
At a recent media briefing session on its readiness for November’s elections, the party addressed the issue of Gumede’s exit for the first time since she was paraded as an MKP member earlier this month.
There was strong belief that Zuma preferred Gumede as the MKP’s eThekwini mayoral candidate, as she would pose a serious threat to the ANC’s long-standing dominance in the region.
However, the ANC eThekwini task team coordinator, Thanduxolo Sabelo, dismissed Gumede as a politically dormant individual who had been lying idle for seven years because the ANC placed her on step-aside in 2019.
“The ANC has never relied on individuals since its inception in 1912. Who ever thought that the ANC would live after Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela? We never depended on individual leaders. Leaders come and go, and the ANC remains. By the way, Gumede has not been politically active for years now, so we do not understand how she is a threat to us,” said Sabelo.
The MKP’s convener in KwaZulu-Natal Willies Mchunu had previously played down speculation that Gumede had been brought in to be a mayoral candidate in eThekwini, and said that decision would be made by Zuma and the party’s Secretary-General Sibonelo Nomvalo.
Gumede, who was still on trial for the R320 million Durban Solid Waste tender corruption scandal, was removed as mayor in August 2019 following her arrest in May that year. Despite her arrest and subsequent stripping of her mayorship and political powers, she remained popular among ANC structures, who turned up in court to support her.
As a consequence of her corruption charges, she was forced to step aside; however, at the 2022 eThekwini ANC regional conference, Gumede was re-elected. When Zuma announced the formation of his party in December 2023, there were rumours that Gumede would immediately join him as she was seen as his staunch backer.
Other ANC members who joined the MKP with Gumede include her former deputy chairperson in the ANC and former Human Settlement Committee head Mondli Mthembu, as well as former eThekwini councillor Stanley Moonsamy.
Sabelo also announced the dismissal of the party’s ward 8 councillor Marco Mbambo, whom they found guilty of secretly working for the DA. Mbambo, who was expected to be unveiled by the DA at its media briefing on Tuesday, was also expelled from the council. Sabelo further announced the party’s readiness for the upcoming elections.
willem.phungula@inl.co.za
