Numsa congress re-elects current leaders amid Labour court appeal

The leaders were elected unopposed despite some delegates storming out of the congress.

Re-elected Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim with his new deputy Mbuso Ngubane at the union’s 11th national congress in Cape Town. Picture: Supplied.

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) has opted to keep its old leadership structures and only brought in new blood to fill deputy posts.

The re-election went ahead despite a pending judgment on Thursday morning on the union’s bid to appeal the Labour Court’s interdict against the gathering.

Numsa 11th national congress

The conference in Cape Town, which has been marred by legal action and chaos, re-elected Andrew Chirwa as the metalworkers union’s president, Irvin Jim as the general secretary, and Mphumzi Maqungo was re-elected as the national treasurer.

The other elected leaders at the conference were Mbuso Ngubane, Mac Chavalala and Puleng Phaka as the deputy general secretary, first deputy president and second deputy president, respectively.

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The leaders were elected unopposed despite some delegates storming out of the congress due to the Johannesburg Labour Court’s interdict.

However, the election of the new Numsa leaders could be short-lived.

Judgment reserved on appeal

Labour Court Judge, Graham Moshoana, on Wednesday evening reserved judgment in the union’s leave to appeal application, against Saturday’s ruling that declared the suspension of Numsa’s former second deputy president, Ruth Ntlokotse, and that of 30 other officials unlawful.

Numsa was also interdicted from proceeding with the congress, but it resolved to go ahead with the gathering.

Judgment on the leave to appeal application was expected to be heard on Thursday at 10am.

Numsa said it believed it had rectified the Labour Court’s concerns regarding the national congress, that was originally supposed to start on Monday at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).

Numsa’s special central committee (SCC) meeting on Tuesday resolved to appeal the Labour Court’s interdict and to convene the multimillion-rand conference from Wednesday to Friday.

The union said the SCC decided that no suspensions should be re-imposed and that the individuals, who were previously suspended, would be permitted to attend and participate in the congress.

But Western Cape and Gauteng delegates stormed out of the gathering, demanding that Numsa should “comply with its own constitution” and the court’s ruling.

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