‘By hook or by crook’

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula and his deputy Nomvula Mokonyane  have been accused of manipulating the West Rand regional conference to ensure that their preferred candidates emerge victorious.

Three regional executive committee (REC) members alleged this week that Mbalula and Mokonyane wanted their preferred candidates to win “by hook or by crook” and that they were even reportedly prepared to manipulate the organisational processes of the conference to favour them.

One REC member told the Mail & Guardian that both Mbalula and Mokonyane were swayed by the regional chair and secretary to ensure their victory, even if the processes were flawed.

“This is about accessing the purse of the government. There has been money exchanged to ‘buy’ the conference. The chair and the secretary do not have a majority in the REC,” the REC member said.

“If we continue with the current REC until the end of our term in June, we will have to recommend three names to the province for mayor, speaker and chief whip. They know this REC will not recommend them for those positions.

“If we go to elections now, the regional secretary and the chair will not be recommended for mayoral positions. That is why they want the conference now, to ensure they get the REC they want so they can be recommended. If they had a majority in the REC, they would not be convening this conference,” the member added.

Mbalula did not respond to requests for comment, while Mokonyane said she would not respond to anonymous sources.

Regional secretary Mkhuseli Jokazi referred all questions to the party’s national spokesperson, saying “please speak to comrade Mahlengi Bhengu”. 

ANC West Rand regional chairperson William Matsheke told the M&G that the allegations are untrue and that he respects the elected leadership of the ANC. He said he has subjected himself and the structure he leads to organisational discipline.

According to Matsheke, these allegations that a mere regional chairperson can buy the secretary-general and the deputy secretary general are a malicious attempt to dent the good names of their leaders.

“The national office-bearers condoned the West Rand to continue with its regional conference among many other regional conferences in Free State and other provinces. We are the only region in Gauteng that was outstanding. The decision was based on the adopted roadmap by the REC.”

Matsheke said he did not want to speak on behalf of REC members raising the allegations, adding that ANC members understood that some people resorted to making accusations when organisational processes did not favour them.

He said all ANC members should respect the office of the secretary-general, which was elected by conference to safeguard the ANC and its processes.

Asked whether he believed there had been any wrongdoing relating to the conference, Matsheke denied this, saying all processes had followed the ANC roadmap without exception and were guided by the party’s constitution and conference guidelines. 

On members who had approached the courts in an attempt to stop the conference, he said the ANC had consistently discouraged members from bypassing internal organisational processes in favour of litigation.

“The image of the ANC will never be damaged by those that are ill-disciplined. In fact, it shows their lack of organisational understanding and respect for democratic centralism … The regional conference is convened and will be attended by the overwhelming majority of branches in the West Rand which is a clear indication that branches remain the basic unit of our movement. Out of 89 branches in good standing, 73 have qualified to attend the Regional Conference.”

The M&G understands that the ANC has been served with court papers by branches seeking to halt the conference, which was officially set for Wednesday, until all processes have been properly followed.

Several REC sources have accused Mbalula of manipulating branches to ensure the conference meets the required threshold to proceed and elect a new leadership aligned with him.

The sources raised discrepancies in the final Branch General Meeting (BGM) verification report dated 12 April and signed off by Mbalula, which M&G has had sight of. 

In one instance, Mbalula signed off a branch as qualified to attend the conference but the date listed for its BGM was 14 July 2026, making it impossible as the calendar was still in April at the time.

According to the verification report, there are 102 branches in the West Rand, with 80 verified. Six were disqualified and three were deemed invalid due to comprising fewer than 100 members. Another REC source said that after the verification report was signed off, no branch should have held a BGM unless there were disputes requiring a rerun.

The source questioned whether the required 70% threshold for the conference to proceed had actually been met. ANC guidelines state that a conference can only proceed if this threshold is reached: “The report was signed off on 12 April by the secretary-general, which should have stopped all processes beyond that date. However, the same report includes branches scheduled for the 13th, 14th and 15th of April. 

“There is a contradiction. It appears that in conducting fraudulent activities, they failed to notice that some dates fall beyond the 12th, when the report was finalised. The report cannot be issued to close all branch sittings, yet still include about 17 branch meetings on 13, 14, and 15 April. 

“The report states that on the 13th, certain branches sat, formed a quorum, qualified and elected leadership. But how can you confirm that a branch scheduled to sit the next day has already qualified? 

“Out of the 71 branches, 36 have disputes, leaving only 35 uncontested. Additionally, six have been disqualified. Why would anyone proceed with the conference under such conditions? Some branches are even listed as sitting in July but still qualify.”

Another source said Mbalula had formally written to them informing them the ANC’s NWC had decided to convene a conference within two weeks of its decision.

The M&G has seen the letter, dated 15 April, in which Mbalula states the NWC met on 13 April and directed that the conference must be held within two weeks.

“If you count 14 days from 13 April, the deadline passed yesterday [Tuesday] without a conference taking place. Our own roadmap required the conference to be held between 14 and 26 April and that deadline has also passed. As things stand, we are being told there will be a conference tomorrow, yet the REC does not know the venue, who is funding it or any details about finances. We do not know the theme, size or security arrangements.”

Another REC source expressed confidence in their legal case, citing numerous procedural flaws: “We believe we will win this case. Any legitimate process would have been dismissed due to non-compliance. We followed procedures strictly. As far as we are concerned, Mbalula is taking an illegal route due to money-related issues. We strongly believe he has been compromised.”

The source added the REC has not seen key documents, including the organisational, financial and political reports, all of which are required. 

“The conference is being funded through state resources. The treasurer says there is only R100 000 in the region, yet the conference will cost over R2 million. 

“The previous conference scheduled for 24 to 26 April was already paid for, so where is the funding for this one coming from? We do not even have conference committees. This shows that just as branches were manipulated, the conference is being manipulated too. Some branch leaders have been listed as verified, yet they are unaware that their branches even sat or were approved.”

Spokesperson Diketo Moreotsenye said the REC had not complied with the conditions set out by Mbalula: “… we have not complied with the terms outlined in the NWC letter written by the secretary-general. We have not met the 70% threshold, we do not have a credentials report and we do not have an elections agency. From where we stand, there is no structure in place to conduct the elections.”

However, Moreotsenye declined to comment on allegations against Mbalula and Mokonyane.