LEGAL WAR LOOMS: NDZ STANDS FIRM AS MBALULA SUES OVER NASREC BRIBERY CLAIMS
By Mpho Dube, Editor-in-Chief
The Azanian | Truth. Fearless. Unfiltered.
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JOHANNESBURG - A bruising legal battle is looming between two ANC giants after Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma filed a notice to oppose Fikile Mbalula's defamation lawsuit and declared she stands by her claim that money was dished out at Nasrec.
ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula has hauled ANC NEC member Dlamini-Zuma to the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg after she accused him of openly handing out money at a clinic during the party's 55th National Conference at Nasrec in December 2022 to secure his election as SG and President Cyril Ramaphosa's re-election.
The allegation was made on the African Renaissance podcast hosted by Dr Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. Mbalula strongly denied it as false and damaging and demanded a retraction. When she refused, he sued.
Dlamini-Zuma confirmed her legal team had filed a notice of intention to oppose.
"I stand by my statements and the substance of the argument raised. Out of respect for the court, I will not argue the merits of the case through public statements as the matter will now be fully ventilated in court," she said.
In a telling twist, Dlamini-Zuma retracted and apologised for similar vote-buying allegations she made on the same podcast against International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola. But for Mbalula - no apology, no retraction.
It is a clear signal: her fight is with the Secretary-General and the system that elected him.
Dlamini-Zuma says the case is bigger than one lawsuit. It is about the soul of the ANC. "The influence of money i n ANC elective conferences is common cause and has been spoken about openly by senior leaders and structures of the movement," she said.
"When money becomes more powerful than political conviction, when delegates can be influenced by financial considerations rather than the movement's political programme, and when leadership contests become commercialised, the very character of the ANC is placed at risk."
She added: "I will continue to raise my conviction sharply that the ANC must deal with the use of money in the movement."
Dlamini-Zuma, a former Health Minister, former AU Commission Chairperson and veteran of the struggle, said she is speaking out precisely because she loves the movement. "I have devoted my life to the struggle and the African National Congress and remain committed to its unity and renewal. It is precisely because of this commitment that I believe we must speak honestly about the challenges facing our movement," she said.
And she warned the party that litigation will not solve its deeper crisis.
"However, the political and organisational question at the heart of this matter remains before the ANC and cannot be resolved through litigation. Our movement must find the courage to confront this problem as it is killing the ANC," she said.
Mbalula is now asking the High Court to declare that Dlamini-Zuma defamed him. Dlamini-Zuma wants the court to hear her evidence that money did flow at Nasrec.
The matter has once again exposed the ANC's open secret - that money plays a powerful role in leadership contests, a problem even President Ramaphosa and other leaders have acknowledged in the past as part of the renewal debate.
One claim retracted. One claim defended. One apology issued. One war declared.
The ANC's dirtiest question - did money buy Nasrec 2022 - is now heading to court.
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