One of the remarkable developments that unfolded on the margins of the ANC’s manifesto launch was the return of Zandile Gumede, former eThekwini mayor, from political oblivion.
The ANC’s former eThekwini regional leader, was forced to step aside from her party leadership role after being charged with fraud and corruption. The charges, which are still being prosecuted, stemmed from her tenure as mayor of the city.
Before Saturday’s rally, it emerged that Gumede had been roped in to mobilise support for the ANC in the upcoming general elections. She had petitioned the provincial and national office bearers to allow her back into party politics.
In public statements, Gwede Mantashe, national chair of the ANC, and Siboniso Duma, the party’s provincial chair, defended her return. Duma went further by saying he would even support Limpopo’s ANC leader Danny Msiza, another high-profile victim of the ANC’s step-aside resolution, to return to ANC duties.
Allowing Gumede, a provincial political heavyweight, to come back shows the ANC is panicked by prospects of her being wooed by Jacob Zuma’s new MK Party. This is myopic thinking.
A medium-term problem is whether the ANC includes her name on the candidates list for the May elections. A bigger problem is that her return makes a mockery of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s talk of ANC renewal.
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