ANC SG to meet protestersThe group was reacting to the ANC’s poor showing during the August 3 local government elections after party lost three of the country’s big metros and its support nationally declined. ANCYL to take disciplinary actions against guilty parties 0 ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe will today meet party members behind the Occupy Luthuli House protest.ANC spokesperson Khusela Sangoni would not reveal any further details in her text message on yesterday.
Last week, a group of ANC members attempted to occupy the ANC’s headquarters in central Johannesburg to demand the resignation of President Jacob Zuma and his national executive committee.
Members of both the ANC Youth League and Umkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans’ Association intimidated and threatened them with violence, saying they were defending Luthuli House. A large number of police officers were present.
At the time, the ANC said the high security was due to a lack of knowledge of how much of a threat the protesters represented.
Mantashe received the group’s memorandum of demands. He thanked those who had turned up to defend the ANC’s headquarters and told them: “Don’t give hooligans free airtime.”
Meanwhile, the ANCYL said it was determining who was part of the occupy group, in order to initiate disciplinary proceedings against them. League president Collen Maine said he hoped they would get expelled. He said their actions were unacceptable.
“Their fate will be decided by a disciplinary process, but if it were me, I would have them expelled. Their behaviour is unacceptable,” Maine told News24 on the phone.
The group said it would accept whatever action the ANC took against them.
Another organiser, secretary Sasa Manganye of the Sefako Makgatho branch in the inner city, told News24 he knew nothing about pending charges.
“I am not aware of any action coming our way. We believe there’s nothing wrong with what we did, but if they come after us, we are ready and will deal with it,” he said.
Manganye said it would be stupid for the ANC to seek to charge them, rather than engaging with the group over its grievances.
He also said he did not fear the league’s president.
“Collen Maine is a nobody, not even a Youth League member.”
NEWS24