Meeting to unite MK veterans put off indefinitely

An elective conference meant to unite two factions of former combatants of the ANC’s military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), had to be abandoned because the majority of the “veterans” were found to be illegitimate and some were too young to qualify as veterans at all.

The conference, initially schedule for 12 to 15 March, was supposed to see a joint meeting of the MK Military Veterans’ Association (MKMVA), led by Kebby Maphatsoe and national council MKNC, led by General Siphiwe Nyanda.

They have been at loggerheads over which was a legitimate representative of the interests of former MK members.

The ANC subcommittee on peace and security, headed by Tony Yengeni, was tasked to unite the two and to establish a structure with a single leadership for all MK veterans.

A media briefing meant to outline preparations for the conference was postponed indefinitely yesterday.

While MKMVA was elected constitutionally, some people questioned the legitimacy of some memberships.

The MKNC, while not a constitutional structure, comprised known MK veterans, some of whom were commanders of the ANC military wing and were part of various military detachments of MK.

The MKMVA aligned itself with the Zuma faction and have openly participated in factional campaigns to defend him. But the MKNC refused to align itself with anybody and insisted that it should concentrate on veterans issues only.

Some people believed wearing the MK uniform in public was an abuse of the privilege because MK had ceased to exist when all forces were united under the SA National Defence Force. But MKMVA members and Maphatsoe continued to wear the green-and-brown camouflage at ANC public gatherings.

The ANC Luthuli House headquarters confirmed in a statement yesterday that 60% of the candidates who were supposed to attend the conference were illegitimate.

The gathering was postponed until further notice.

It is understood the department of military veterans (DMV) showed many were illegitimate.

The postponement of the conference was due to the fear of disrupting DMV processes, or violating its procedures and procurement requirements.

If it had gone ahead and enlisted soldiers were allowed to participate, there would have been a violation of the Military Veterans Act No 18 of 2011, where a military veteran is described as “anyone who already retired from the army”.

Most of the delegates were still serving in the army.

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