ANC Free State: ‘Dukwana has to clean dirt of corruption’

Under the new leadership of Mxolisi Dukwana, the ANC in the Free State has no choice but to “clean the house of the dirt of corruption and dead wood in the party and provincial government”, a political analyst says.

‘Eradicate corruption’

Political analyst Sandile Swana, reacting to the election of Dukwana as ANC provincial chair along with the provincial executive committee at the weekend, said Dukwana’s tenure was an opportunity to eradicate corruption in the Free State and put it on the path to success.

“The Dukwana slate has an urgent task to eradicate bogus ANC branches, fake ANC members and fraudulent deployees of [former premier Ace] Magashule and company in the state and the ANC generally.

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New Cabinet

“The Dukwana slate has very little choice but to set up a new Cabinet, probably new mayors to recover lost electoral ground,” Swana said.

Dukwana was elected to lead the party there after a decade of dominance by Magashule and his proxies who succeeded him in the provincial administration.

The Free State has been notorious for graft involving senior officials of the party and the provincial administration, collapsed service delivery at all municipalities including the Mangaung metro.

ANC national chair Gwede Mantashe, opening the ANC ninth provincial conference on Saturday, lamented the fact that none of the Free State municipalities had received clean audits from the auditor-general.

He blamed both the provincial government and local authorities for the crisis of lack delivery and poor administration.

In closing the conference on Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa told Dukwana: “You must take it as your task to unite the ANC – even those who were not walking with you.”

Analyst professor Sethulego Matebesi also advised Dukwana to reach out to party members who were not on his side.

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