Numsa leadership power struggle tests union’s credibility

The leadership of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), one of South Africa’s largest unions, is in limbo after regional and national leaders suspended each other in a power struggle over control of the metalworkers’ union.

In scenes reminiscent of the 2021 power struggle between then ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule and party leader Cyril Ramaphosa, when Magashule attempted to suspend Ramaphosa before being suspended himself, Numsa’s national office bearers and regional leaders have suspended each other in less than a week.

The power struggle and counter-suspensions are threatening the credibility of the union, the backbone of the South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu).

At its peak before its expulsion from Cosatu in November 2014, Numsa was its largest affiliate with about 360,000 members.

The national office bearers announced last Thursday that their special national executive committee (NEC) had resolved to suspend the regional leaders, who in turn said they had lost confidence in them.

However, the regional leaders announced at a media briefing on Tuesday that their own executive committee, which met on Monday, had resolved to suspend the office bearers on charges of dereliction of duty, conduct bringing the union into disrepute, gross violations of the Numsa constitution and constitutional procedures, and wasteful expenditure.

The regional leaders’ special national executive committee meeting maintained that the central committee meeting of October 23 was “properly constituted and that its decisions remain valid and binding. No court of law has set aside those decisions”.

The central committee meeting resolved to strip the national office bearers, including general secretary Irvin Jim and president Andrew Chirwa, of their powers and replaced them with a task co-ordinating team.

“The special national executive committee expressed serious concern about the conduct of the national office bearers, particularly the failure to respect and implement decisions of the central committee and the resulting disruption to the effective functioning of the union,” the Numsa statement announcing the outcomes of the committee meeting says.

“The executive committee believes that the continued disregard for constitutional decisions, the undermining of elected regional leadership and the emergence of competing centres of authority have contributed significantly to the organisational instability experienced by Numsa.

“After considering these matters, it resolved that the general secretary, comrade Irvin Jim, comrade Mbuso Ngubane and the remaining national office bearers be suspended forthwith from their respective duties, pending investigations into allegations of misconduct, in terms of Chapter 3(c)(v) of the Numsa constitution.”

It said the purpose of these measures was to safeguard the integrity of the union, protect its constitutional structures and ensure accountability for conduct that may have undermined organisational stability and democratic worker control.

“The committee further resolved that suspensions imposed by the national office bearers without proper constitutional authority must be lifted.”

Business Day has reported that the Numsa regional leaders had consented that the powers to suspend or implement disciplinary actions against them rested with the regional executive committee.

This after Jim and Chirwa wrote to the regional leaders on Monday, the day the regional leaders held their special national executive committee, saying the national office bearers remained the legitimate leadership, and called on them to withdraw the notice and cancel the “purported meeting, including any adjournment or reconvening of it; if proceedings have commenced, cease conducting them as a meeting of Numsa’s NEC and refrain from adopting or implementing purported decisions in that capacity”.

The national office bearers held their own special NEC last week where they resolved to suspend the regional leaders who held a central committee meeting and suspended the national office bearers, replacing them with a task co-ordinating team.

Regional leaders from the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, JC Bez, Mpumalanga and Sedibeng defied Jim by convening a central committee meeting recently, the highest decision-making body between national congresses. Jim had written to them to say the meeting scheduled for October 23-25 had been cancelled until further notice.

The letter by Jim followed a ruling by labour court judge Edwin Tlhotlhalemaje preventing Numsa and the office-bearers from barring delegates from Mpumalanga from attending, participating and voting at committee meetings.

At the central committee meeting (October 23-25), the regional leaders, including Andile Bloko, Nkosinathi Makhanya and Andile Nqilingwane, resolved to strip the national office of their delegated powers and functions.

“The special national executive recognises that Numsa is confronting a serious organisational challenge that requires decisive, collective and constitutionally grounded intervention. The union’s recovery cannot be achieved through factional manoeuvring, intimidation, the manipulation of constitutional provisions or the undermining of democratically elected structures. It requires honesty, accountability, organisational discipline and respect for the collective decisions of the membership.”

Numsa national spokesperson Mbali Ngwenda has been approached for comment, which will be added once received.

Business Day