ANCWL ABANDONS GAUTENG GENERAL COUNCIL SET TO NOMINATE NEW PROVINCIAL LEADER

This comes as the race heats up between Lebogang Maile and Panyaza Lesufi.

Tshidi Madia | 

JOHANNESBURG - The leadership of the African National Congress Women’s League (ANCWL) has abandoned its Gauteng general council set to nominate its preferred candidate to lead the party in the province.

This comes as the race heats up between Lebogang Maile and Panyaza Lesufi.

Eyewitness News understands the meeting collapsed over credentials with provincial secretary Ester Nhlapo, saying there were mischievous happenings on the go and delegates who did not belong in the meeting in attendance.

Gauteng is expected to elect a new provincial executive committee in June.

The stakes in Gauteng, where the ANC is just on the edge of being pushed out of power, couldn’t be higher.

And as its regions, Ekurhuleni, Tshwane, Johannesburg, West Rand and Sedibeng - along with its three leagues, the women, youth and veterans - prepare to decide who to support tension are simmering.

On Sunday, the Women’s League provincial general council failed to conduct its business of the day with some claiming the leaders feared Maile might get the nod when some among them preferred Lesufi.

But Nhlapo has dismissed all this, saying they wanted women to vote but had far greater concerns, which called for the meeting to be abandoned.

“There are those people who are mischievous and as the ANC Women’s League, we don’t want to be known as the mischievous organisation.”

Over the coming weeks, these regions will hold their internal contests.

With Lesufi and Maile going head-to-head next month.