ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba is at loggerheads with his party’s highest decision-making body, the senate, over the direction the party should take in Gauteng coalition talks.
Mashaba put his foot down and told the Sunday Times that ActionSA will not work with the ANC under his watch, despite a decision by the senate to resume talks with all political parties — including the ANC — on how to form sustainable coalitions.
Party leaders say they are pushing ahead with talks with the ANC despite Mashaba’s misgivings. Party spokesperson Lerato Ngobeni said Mashaba’s personal views were not those of the party.
“Mr Mashaba is a citizen and has his own views about how things should go but his own views are not always or 100% the views of the organisation,” said Ngobeni.
Mashaba insisted in an interview that if the party goes to bed with the ANC in Gauteng metropolitan municipalities, he will quit.
“Going into a coalition with the ANC is tantamount to suicide. That coalition will collapse in a week because ActionSA will hold them openly and directly accountable,” said Mashaba.
“In the likelihood of our consultation process saying we must work with the ANC, I am happy to step aside because I cannot lead a party that works with criminals.
“I will never be associated with criminals. The ANC is a criminal enterprise and I am confident Actioners are not going to allow us to work with criminals.”
ActionSA has opened a public consultation process seeking the views of its members, supporters and the public on whether it should consider the ANC as a coalition partner. The process is due to be concluded on Friday, after which the party’s senate will make a public pronouncement.
But Mashaba said if the outcome is that ActionSA can work with the ANC in Tshwane and Ekurhuleni, his party cannot count on him to implement the decision.
ActionSA insiders said they were shocked by Mashaba’s hard line after he had apparently agreed that both the ANC and the EFF could be engaged with a view to saving the metros from the DA.
The Sunday Times last week reported that part of the plan was for the ANC to govern Johannesburg, the EFF Ekurhuleni and ActionSA Tshwane, thus leaving the DA out in the cold.
Mashaba confirmed talks with the ANC, adding they were approved by the senate before he went to Kenya on holiday.
I will never be associated with criminals. The ANC is a criminal enterprise and I am confident Actioners are not going to allow us to work with criminals
— Herman Mashaba
Another insider said after Mashaba’s green light to engage other parties, including the ANC, the matter was officially tabled before the senate and was resolved on unanimously.
A four-member working group that would form the ActionSA delegation in the talks with the ANC was then formed. Engagements with ANC to pin down a date for talks ensued and the parties agreed in principle to meet this week.
But when Mashaba came back from holiday he addressed an event at which he was asked about collaboration with the ANC — and said it would never happen on his watch.
On Tuesday, when the ActionSA working group met to finalise strategy and approach, Mashaba was telling a talk-radio show that he would quit if the party paired up with the ANC.
“Then there is a consultation process that is open, but you ask yourself what is the impact of starting a process when the president of the organisation says if this process has a particular outcome he is going to resign?” a frustrated insider said.
“We are now all in a fix because everyone has left the resolution and he is the only one who must then guide it with his views in front. The emerging risk that many inside ActionSA do not want to speak about [is that] Mashaba is bigger than the party.”
According to Mashaba, those suggesting that he behaved like a “supreme leader” could not stand him because he was not a flip-flopper.
ANC national spokesperson Pule Mabe said the party took exception to being called criminals and might take legal action.
According to Mabe, it was cause for concern that the ANC had become open season for “libellous” commentary from other political formations.
“It is so strange that many of these fellows in the opposition have sought to characterise the ANC in that defamatory manner when the ANC itself has never stood trial for commission of any criminal act,” said a fuming Mabe.
“Making defamatory statements without any form of evidence is treasonous ... This is becoming a trend against the ANC which is now left with no choice but to exercise its own rights.
“When you say the ANC is a criminal enterprise you are saying all its voters are criminals. You cannot continue making defamatory statements and be let off scot-free,” he said.
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