Ramaphosa faction ‘trying to pretend step-aside rule is evenly applied’

Experts have weighed in on the raging debate over the ANC’s controversial step-aside policy as rumblings abound about whether it should be scrapped at the party’s national conference next month.

The governing party’s last July national policy conference decided not to interfere with the step-aside rule and attempts to have it scrapped were defeated. But some members, including presidential candidates Zweli Mkhize, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Lindiwe Sisulu, continued to question its alleged selective use.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s opponents within the party are using the step-aside issue as a stepping stone to get to him, although it was a collective conference resolution. Suspended party secretary-general Ace Magashule claimed Ramaphosa used the policy to target his opponents.

Step-aside rule ‘unnecessary’

Independent political analyst Sandile Swana said the ANC step-aside rule was unnecessary because the party’s constitution sufficiently provided for action to be taken against members involved in unethical and immoral activities.

Swana criticised the ANC’s reliance on National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) decisions to charge someone before the party forced that member to step aside.

Another analyst, Prof Susan Booysen, said there were clear signs the rule was being applied selectively and, therefore, would continue to cause ructions among ANC members. “I see evidence of selective application and it has become ammunition in the current election campaigns.

ALSO READ: Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma: ‘Step-aside rule unjust and unfair’

“Conference debates will centre on that and they have to find a solution to this.

“The Ramaphosa faction is trying to pretend it is evenly applied. It’s one of those things that get resolved in silent moments.”

Swana said the governing party should have rather used its constitution to discipline members because that covered all offences that warranted disciplinary action.

“Why not apply the constitution as it is and deal with people involved in misconduct, without having to rely on an external body such as the NPA or any other body?

“They should rely on the constitution and the disciplinary structures of the ANC,” he said.

ANC not applying disciplinary code

The fact that the party was able to invoke its constitution in an instance where a member refused to cooperate or step aside showed the constitution was sufficient to achieve what step-aside was expected to achieve.

The problem right now was that the ANC leadership was not applying its disciplinary code of conduct to the letter, hence it had opted for the divisive step-aside policy.

“Problem is [the ANC] wait for the NPA to charge a person before they decide about their own member. The processes initiated by the NPA are not based on whether someone has done wrong but on the winability of the case from the NPA’s point of view.”

There were many ANC comrades who had done so much wrong that warranted the application of the step-aside rule or even expulsion, but whose matters could not be attended to because they wait for the NPA to pronounce on their matters, he added.

ALSO READ: Limpopo ANC accused of selective implementation of ‘step-aside’ rule

“For the NPA even to charge a person takes a very long time. To get a case completed, the whole five-year term can be spent in court. So, if you step aside at the beginning of your term like Ace Magashule, it means you have not been able to serve, yet you have not been convicted of anything. You are still innocent until proven guilty.

“Because the ANC process is not based on ethics or its constitution purely, but merely on the actions of the NPA, to this extent this is going to be selective. It is minimalist and chooses certain types of people for step-aside,” Swana said.

– ericn@citizen.co.za