ANC Gauteng Branches Opt for Zuma

ANC Gauteng Branches Opt for Zuma



Geskryf deur Business Day
Dinsdag, 13 November 2007
THE majority of African National Congress (ANC) Gauteng branches have come out in support of Jacob Zuma in the party's leadership race set to come to a head at its conference in 34 days.In Johannesburg, Gauteng's most influential region, not a single branch voted in favour of President Thabo Mbeki's bid for a third term. More than half of Johannesburg's branches have completed their nomination processes. The region produces a quarter of ANC's Gauteng delegates going to the elective national conference in Polokwane.Meanwhile, nothing has come of reports of Mbeki's imminent nomination by the ANC's Sandton branch.An insider said yesterday the Sunday afternoon branch general meeting "did not materialise" as delegates "failed" to pitch.Commentators are looking to the ANC's nomination process, which closes on November 26, for an early indication of the state of the Zuma-Mbeki race.To add to Mbeki's re-election woes in Gauteng, businessman Cyril Ramaphosa has secured more presidential nominations than Mbeki has in the province. Ramaphosa has five nominations, while Mbeki and another presidential hopeful, Tokyo Sexwale, have three each.With just more than a quarter of the 354 branches in Gauteng having finalised their preferences for the ANC's top posts, Zuma has already secured 57 presidential nominations.Gauteng is the ANC's fourth- largest voting bloc at the national conference, after Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo.Steven Friedman, senior research associate at policy think-tank Idasa, said the Gauteng picture was a bigger problem for Mbeki than the news for Zuma that he was losing the nomination race in Eastern Cape."This must weigh heavily for Mbeki, and surely will make him pause for thought. The question of how important it is for him to beat Zuma has to arise. What happens to his legacy? What if he ends up losing, what if he ends up winning but only by 52% or 54 % of the vote ?" Friedman asked.Another insider said that the ANC Youth League in Gauteng had been "instrumental" in ensuring the upsurge of support for Zuma in the province.The league remains Zuma's key backer, while KwaZulu-Natal is regarded as his strongest constituency.Mbeki's main support base is Eastern Cape, while his lobbyists are also pursuing the ANC Women's League's nomination .