By JN Reporter
With the ANC Mangaung regional conference hanging in the balance following its dramatic collapse over the weekend, intense behind-the-scenes lobbying has shifted into overdrive as factions scramble to reconfigure their slates — and an unexpected dark horse has emerged as a serious contender for the influential position of regional secretary.
Multiple party insiders told Journal News – this week – that negotiations have intensified among branch delegates and power brokers since the conference was nullified, with alliances being reshaped amid uncertainty over when the gathering will reconvene.
While frontrunners had dominated discussions ahead of the aborted conference, a lesser-expected candidate has arisen from the plenary flow during the nomination process on Saturday and is now gaining momentum as some delegates push for a compromise figure capable of uniting fractured blocs within the region.
With about 30 voting delegates backing him ahead of the conference, former provincial and regional secretary, Paseka Nompondo, shifted the dynamics and tightened the contest between the two factions, with deputy chairperson, Vusi Soqaga, was poised to topple incumbent chairperson, Lawrence Mathae, for the region’s top position.
Backed for his “experience and love for the organisation,” according to party insiders, Nompondo is said to have leveraged his support base to bolster Soqaga’s faction while effectively ending regional spokesperson Ncamile Nxangisa’s bid for the regional secretary position.
“It was interesting to see how comrade Nompondo manoeuvred his way onto the Soqaga slate using his numbers. He quickly moved from being a dark horse to a compromise frontrunner for the position in just one late-night meeting. A decision had to be made within a split second to make way for him and withdraw comrade Nxangisa from contesting against incumbent regional secretary Sabelo Pitso,” said a party insider.
She expressed confidence that while discussions over other positions continue ahead of the rerun conference, reportedly set for next week, the names of Nompondo and Setjhaba Machakela remain dominant in internal conversations.
However, according to another source close to the developments, questions are emerging over Machakela’s sudden rise, as he would have been elected unopposed for the position of regional treasurer, had the conference not collapsed.
“It is difficult at this stage to say with certainty whether comrade Machakela will return when the conference is reconvened. But things are not looking good for him as lobbying intensifies,” the source said.
As lobbying intensified and shifts were made within the Soqaga faction, a series of consultation meetings followed, prompting the Mathae grouping to level the playing field by removing Lulama Titi-Odili from the chairperson race and repositioning her as a candidate for deputy regional secretary against Deliwe Mei.
Titi-Odili previously held the same position in the last Regional Executive Committee (REC), whose term has since expired and was replaced by the current Regional Task Team (RTT).
“It was then realised that the Mathae slate was on the verge of losing the conference by about five votes or a few more and needed to consolidate the support bases of both Mathae and Titi-Odili. That ultimately gave their slate the upper hand during the nomination process … it was a very tight lead,” said another source.
During the nomination process in plenary, conducted through a show of hands, delegates also nominated Vumile Nikelo, to deputise Mathae, while Manthuse Letawana was put forward by the Soqaga faction for the deputy chairperson position.
ANC provincial spokesperson, Thabo Meeko, says the PEC is awaiting the green light from national leadership to reconvene the regional conference.
“The PWC, followed by the PEC, met on Monday and received reports from deployees at the conference, which indicated that no foul play was committed during the conference. As a result, we are now awaiting national leadership to give the go-ahead to reconvene the conference,” said Meeko.
