ANC KZN provincial chairman Siboniso Duma with Springboks player Eben Etzebeth and KZN Premier Nomusa Dube Ncube. PHOTO: KZN Provincial Gov/Facebook
- A perception of two centres of power in the ANC-led KwaZulu-Natal has set it on a collision course with the ANC Women’s League.
- A trophy hoisting incident between ANC provincial chairperson Siboniso Duma and KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube has set tongues wagging.
- ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo said what looked like Dube-Ncube being snubbed was an innocent incident that boiled down to her height.
A tiff between the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal and the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) is playing itself out in the open.
This after the latter criticised provincial chairperson Siboniso Duma for upstaging Premier Nomsa Dube-Ncube during the Rugby World Cup trophy tour in eThekwini at the weekend.
The ANCWL issued a statement on Monday, admonishing Duma for “blatant sexism” and undermining the premier.
The statement followed what has been described as an embarrassing incident for the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal.
Duma, who is also the MEC for economic development and tourism affairs, essentially dwarfed Dube-Ncube when he hoisted the Webb Ellis trophy aloft alongside Springbok Eben Etzebeth.
READ | KZN cup-hoisting debacle: ANCWL says Duma’s behaviour towards Dube-Ncube was ‘blatant sexism’
The ANCWL – which previously butted heads with the ANC in the province after the party nullified a provincial ANCWL elective conference – did not take kindly to the incident.
ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo and spokesperson Mafika Mndebele hit back at the ANCWL on Tuesday.
In an interview with eNCA, Mtolo said Dube-Ncube was too “short” to lift the trophy with the lanky Etzebeth, adding the video of her being snubbed was “manipulated”.
He added Dube-Ncube, Etzebeth and Duma all initially touched the trophy.
Mtolo said:
When it was the time to lift the trophy up there, the premier was a bit [shorter] than them.
He added Dube-Ncube told him she had agreed with Duma he could lift the cup, and the premier touched the cup for “almost seven seconds”.
Mtolo said the ANCWL “wants to finish” and “liquidate” the ANC in the province.
He added critics wanted to make Dube-Ncube appear as a “token”, saying she would not be bullied and did not need anyone to defend her as she had the capacity to defend herself.
In an interview with journalists on Tuesday, on the sidelines of a provincial government event, Dube-Ncube said:
I do not believe I can be overshadowed. I think I’m a woman enough, strong enough and a leader enough. And I don’t believe that any woman at any time needs to feel overshadowed. We need to understand that we are leaders in our own right and should not be intimidated in any way, shape or form.
Meanwhile, Mndebele said: “The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal rejects the ANCWL statement and attempts to isolate […] Duma and weaken the ANC-led government.”
He added the party in the province “takes exception” to the ANCWL’s “attack” on Duma.
Mndebele echoed Mtolo’s comment that the premier had agreed “to allow Siboniso Duma to lift the trophy”.
He quoted Dube-Ncube as saying: “Nobhala [Mtolo] and officials, please let’s not allow these detractors to play cheap politics at dividing the ANC and the public.
“We actually laughed with comrade Mthombeni [Duma] yesterday about the fact that he is the one that will match Etzebeth because of his height.”
Mndebele said it was “extremely sad that the ANCWL has decided to be the loudhailers of the chorus peddled by forces opposed to the ANC”.
He added they expected the ANCWL to discuss the matter with the provincial leaders “instead of this reckless posture that is divisive and factional at best”.
“In particular, the less said about the author of the statement, ANCWL deputy secretary comrade Dina Pule, the better.”
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