The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party is not done purging members that it suspects of being “rogues working with external forces” from the newly formed party.
THE UMKHONTO weSizwe (MK) Party is not done purging members that it suspects of being “rogues working with external forces” from the newly formed party.
This is a promise made by MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela after the ANC splinter party expelled five of its members, including Jabulani Khumalo, who is credited with registering the organisation at the Electoral Commission of SA.
Speaking to the DFA’s sister newspaper The Mercury on Sunday, Ndhlela said more expulsions could be on the cards.
“We will be holding a media briefing to unpack the party’s action and what we have found. We started at national level (with expulsions) and we are still going to be coming down to provinces,” he said.
In a statement on Friday, the MK Party said there had been attempts by external forces working with people in the party to destabilise it, and as a result it had expelled several people, including Khumalo.
“We want to categorically state that the national leadership core will always act and make decisions in the interests of all patriotic South Africans who want to see change.
“We urge all MK members to be disciplined and trust the leadership as we work towards gaining support for a campaign that will emancipate the down-trodden of our country,” said the statement.
Ndhlela was scathing of his former comrades.
“These people were becoming a cancer in the organisation and their actions risked collapsing it and the party had to act to put a stop to that.”
Ndhlela said the “intelligence” report that the party has in its possession had shown that these members were “being bought” by external people to influence the organisation. “We can’t complain about the ANC being bought and then here we are, being bought.”
The MK Party spokesperson said the expulsions would have no impact on the running of the party, pointing out that an interim structure was in place and new people will be brought in to fill the roles left vacant by those who were expelled.
He described Khumalo as a non-entity in the party. “He had no role in the organisation, his was a ceremonial role. The party has always had one president and that is president Jacob Zuma.”
The Mercury tried to call Khumalo on his phone but was unsuccessful. Another expelled member, Ray Khumalo, refused to comment, saying he was unable to speak on the matter.
The latest round of expulsions, especially that of Jabulani Khumalo, took many political experts by surprise. However, they were quick to add that the ructions were unlikely to have any negative influence on how the MK Party is perceived by voters.
Political analyst Thabani Khumalo said friction was to be expected because of the varied calibre of people who had joined, adding that the situation could worsen if the party does well in the elections.
“If they garner enough votes to propel the party to the centre of forming a government, that is when this situation is likely to get much worse with the competition being fierce, that is when we will see only the strong survive,” he said.
Khumalo said the manner in which the party disposed of the person who registered it spoke volumes about the party’s decisiveness and could be seen as a positive attribute to voters.
Siyabonga Ntombela, a lecturer of politics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, said the move was stunning.
“How do you expel someone who founded the party? This goes back to what I have been saying: that the leadership of the party, especially if the party secures seats in Parliament, will be endorsed by former president Zuma.”
