By Celani Sikhakhane
- KZN ANC leaders allegedly sought help from the Zulu King’s prime minister, Thulasizwe Buthelezi, to probe ANC Women’s League’s Bongi Sithole-Moloi for corruption.
- Buthelezi resisted being “used” for political gains, leading to tensions with both ANC and IFP leaders over his anti-corruption actions.
KZN ANC leaders allegedly tried to use the Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi, the Zulu King’s prime minister, to investigate the provincial convener of the ANC Women’s League for corruption.
Buthelezi would be able to act in his capacity as MEC for cooperative governance and traditional affairs.
The investigation would have forced the women’s league convener, Bongi Sithole-Moloi, to step aside as per the ANC guidelines for members finding themselves in trouble with the law.
The revelations were made to Scrolla.Africa at the weekend by ANC leaders who support Sithole-Moloi, a former Cogta MEC.
Sithole-Moloi has been in a political tussle with her provincial leadership, which does not want her to lead the ANCWL Task Team.
Their reluctance comes in the aftermath of the women‘s league’s chaotic provincial conference held last year at the Durban ICC.
Some of these sources, who did not want to be named, said that the problem started when Buthelezi refused to be used as a “puppet” of those ANC leaders that he had turned against, finding serious allegations of corruption in their municipalities.
“The aim was to weaponise Buthelezi against Bongi Sithole-Moloi. That is why when he first entered the office soon after he was appointed the Cogta MEC, he suspended all senior officials, including the chief financial officer of that department and other senior managers,” said a source.
“Those ANC leaders were celebrating because they thought Buthelezi would find something against Bongi Sithole-Moloi. Unfortunately, nothing has been found so far.”
She revealed that those leaders decided to turn against Buthelezi and collude with certain leaders of the IFP to plot against him.
“They turned against him after he started probing the Greater Kokstad municipality where he found serious allegations of corruption against a certain security company that was paid for years without doing the job,” said another source.
“In fact those allegations were first unearthed by Bongi Sithole-Moloi when she was still the Cogta MEC but she decided to sweep the investigation under the carpet.
“The biggest problem is that Bongi is seen as a threat because her name was tipped along with that of the mayor of Mkhanyakude district, Siphile Mdaka, to take over the province as an interim structure amid rumours that the ANC national leadership contemplated making good on recommendations to disband the current provincial leadership,” another leader said.
The Cogta MEC is seen by some within his own IFP as a threat because there are rumours that he might be elected at the next IFP conference as secretary general or president of the party.
It is also feared that he meanwhile is gaining serious political clout in the IFP, which is a threat to other leaders of the KZN Legislature.
With Buthelezi uncooperative, the plan now, according to sources, is to approach the IFP MEC for agriculture and rural development, Thembeni KaMadlopha-Mthethwa, to institute an investigation against senior managers who were close to Sithole-Moloi when she held that post.
Another leader being targeted is former MEC for sports, arts and culture, Dr Ntuthuko Mahlaba.
It is claimed that he was deliberately left out of the IFP-led cabinet because certain leaders in the ANC are after him as he is running for the position of provincial chairperson ahead of the upcoming KZN ANC elective conference.
A source said Buthelezi is like a lone ranger in that cabinet because some IFP and ANC leaders are gunning for him to be removed.
Last week the ANC threatened to collapse the Government of Provincial Unity, based on their unhappiness with Buthelezi, who they claim is problematic even in his own political party.
In a statement Buthelezi said: “I will not be bullied by the KZN ANC, nor will I mollycoddle the corruption and malfeasance that was the order of the day in the Cogta department in the sixth administration.”
ANC spokesperson Mafika Mndebele told Scrolla.Africa that he was in a meeting. Later he no longer answered calls to respond to the allegations.
Pictured above: ANCWL KZN Convener and former Cogta MEC Bongi Sithole-Moloi.
Source: X
