Comrades say they find him to be “a man of capacity” and best suited to help the broader movement in its campaign for rebuilding and renewal.
Former Gert Sibande ANCYL leader Thulasizwe Thomo is emerging as a key player in Mpumalanga politics and is the man positioned to take the helm of the ANCYL when a provincial conference is held this week Wednesday 10 August 2022.
Thomo is emerging as the sole frontrunner for the provincial chairperson position.
It appears the position of secretary will be highly contested – with atleast 4 candidates vying for the same post.
The Mpumalanga ANCYL has not held an elective conference since July 2016.
In August last year, a provincial task team led by Thomo as convener and Sthembile Mhlongo was appointed to take Mpumalanga to an elective congress.
Thomo is chief of staff at the Gert Sibande district municipality, previously he was departmental deputy director at Msukaligwa municipality and is currently the spokesperson of the Gert Sibande ANC – appointed after their Badplaas congress in April 2022.
Regional league leaders said they will support Thomo to lead Mpumalanga as chair because he is “seasoned” and “can lead the renewal drive”.
“The ANCYL is a preparatory school. Comrade Thulas, like many of us, has capacity but the main reason we support him is the experience he has in leadership,” one of the comrades in Ehlanzeni said when they spoke to the 013NEWS reporter over the phone.
For the post of provincial secretary, the regions said they will sit and discuss amongst themselves as branches whether to support league task team spokesman Zwelo Masilela, former Bohlabela regional chair Precious Tonga, ex-Nkangala secretary Thabang Mathebula, task team fundraiser Sifiso Makhabane or the league’s Zakhele Matukane.
Mhlongo is tipped for the post of deputy provincial chair as is task team additional member Lucky Zitha.
Nkangala said it will support Mathebula, while both Gert Sibande and Ehlanzeni said they will have “consolidated views” once they have met as structures.
“We currently don’t have a candidate for the post of provincial secretary. We will be bargaining with the other regions. As part of bargaining we will see which candidates they want so that we balance between the candidates we want as additional members. We will see what will transpire at the conference,” Gert Sibande ANCYL secretary Maqhawe Mlotshwa said Monday morning.
Nkangala ANCYL secretary Themba “Ndosi” Ntuli hinted they will support their former secretary Thabang Mathebula at the Wednesday elective congress.
“As Nkangala we have interest in the position of provincial secretary,” Ndosi said. “We are ready with more than 200 delegates coming to that congress,” he said.
Task team additional member Pascaline Mazibuko appears to be the only runner for the post of provincial deputy secretary.
Sipho Mahlangu and Thandeka Skhosana will face off for the treasurer post.
Ehlanzeni coordinator Zakhele Shabangu said their view as a region will be known after Tuesday once they have had a meeting as a regional leadership to “consolidate” views on favoured candidates.
“We are still to sit and discuss which candidate to support for provincial secretary amongst the four comrades. We don’t yet have a candidate. But for chair we all agree that Thulasizwe should lead,” he said.
The names of William Mokwele and Faith Msibi also have emerged amongst candidates to be supported by Nkangala to come lead the ANCYL PEC as additional members.
Fear that eMalahleni branches won’t attend conference
Leaders are currently reeling over a looming crisis of “excluding” the eMalahleni sub-region.
Only 12 of the 34 eMalahleni branches have passed the audit to attend the conference and that is not sitting well with comrades in that sub-region.
“This is one of the reasons the ANC is struggling with votes in eMalahleni because people from the area are excluded from participating in the life of the ANC. This is an economic hub of the province and is therefore a strategic sub-region, to say no branches from this area should attend conference is an injustice to the ANC. Remember even during the ANC conference only 12 branches of the 34 qualified to attend the conference while the rest of sub-regions were fully represented by branches,” one of the comrades in Witbank said Monday afternoon over the phone.
The eMalahleni ANC sub-region had most branches failing audit in a preliminary report released by organising head Nomvula Mokonyane last year June, owing to “thugs who were rented to disrupt all the BGM meetings” as contests for councillor candidates and congress positions intensified.
In a letter written to ANCYL interim national leadership, the league’s convener in eMalahleni Mpho Nkutha said they were shocked to learn that their forms were not received by Nkangala secretary Themba “Ndosi” Ntuli.
“We, therefore, humbly request the national youth task team fundraiser to confirm by proof of payment or release bank statements to correct the allegations that eMalahleni branches memberships were not paid and submitted.
“This is to affirm that the membership of eMalahleni was submitted and audited. However, there appears to elements which indicate a concerted effort to exclude eMalahleni youth league branches by all means possible to participate in the upcoming ANCYL congress,” Nkutha said.
Ndosi said it’s not true that eMalahleni is being sidelined deliberately.
“Problems we faced are incomplete membership where the membership is less than 100, launch of parallel branch executive committee and branch task teams that can’t be traced,” he said, adding that a final audit report will be released Tuesday 9 August 2022 and they hope more branches will be added to the 12 that has already qualified.
“It’s true that most branches from eMalahleni will have problem attending the conference because majority of branches didn’t go for an audit as branches were withheld and there were late submissions. We have in past weeks asked the NYTT to audit those branches that qualify and we are expecting that report Tuesday 9 August,” the secretary said.
(edited by ZK)
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