Delegates at the ANC provincial conference in Durban on Sunday. Picture: Doctor Ngcobo/African News Agency (ANA)
DURBAN - The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal has called for the scrapping of the party’s controversial step-aside policy, saying it is not serving its intended purpose.
The move was one of the resolutions adopted at the provincial elective conference held this past weekend in Durban.
Reading the conference resolutions at the conclusion of the three-day gathering on Sunday evening, newly-elected provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo said the resolution to scrap the policy would now be taken to the National Policy Conference.
“The conference noted the urgency to review the implementation of the step-aside resolution in order to position the organisation on a trajectory for unity and renewal,” said Mtolo.
He observed that the policy appeared to be selectively applied and that this needed to be attended to swiftly.
Mtolo added that the policy with its current implementation had left the ruling party hamstrung.
“Therefore the conference resolved that the delegates to the National Policy Conference must forward a proposal that the step-aside resolution must not only be reviewed, but must be scrapped,” said the secretary. The resolution was met with applause from the conference delegates.
ANC Youth League co-ordinator Mafika Mndebele said they were thrilled that the provincial conference had taken this position, adding that it had emboldened them to call for its total scrapping at the national elective conference in December this year.
The league had indicated last week that they would be lobbying for the removal of the policy because it was not in line with the country’s Constitution, which emphasises that a person is innocent until proven guilty.
If the resolution is approved at the National Policy Conference next month, it will then be taken to the ANC’s highest decision-making body, the National Elective Conference, in December for approval.