Free State High Court Judge, Fouché Jordaan, is set to deliver his much anticipated judgment on the legality of the conference and its outcomes before midday. Jordaan reserved judgment two weeks ago after the opposing counsel each delivered their arguments on February 7. 

The applicants - Matshepo Ramakatsa, Lebeko Maile, Themba Mvandaba, and Shashapa Motaung – approached the court in November 2018 to challenge the legality of the provincial elective conference that took place in May last year. 

It was at this elective conference that the MEC of Police, Roads, and Transport, Sam Mashinini, was elected ANC Chairperson in the province, William Bulwane Deputy Chairperson, and Paseka Nompondo the Secretary. The disgruntled group, represented by Advocates Dali Mpofu and Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, allege the conference took place in the absence of legally elected delegates from branches and without proper audits of the branches being done within the nine-month period specified in the party’s Constitution. 

The ANC provincial and national leadership, represented by Advocates William Mokhari and Ishmael Semenya, argued their clients were not in contravention of the November 2017 court order, because they did end up rerunning those BGMs as was instructed in that order. They used a December 15 High Court judgment to support their assertion. This judgment indicated that of the 28 BGMs that were rerun, only 14 were done successfully. 

Mokhari maintained the applicants wanted Jordaan to take the November 2017 judgment into account and ignore the one that followed. He says “the December 2017 judgment supersedes the one the applicants refer to in their argument”. 

Regarding the audits, Mokhari accused the applicants of arguing a different case entirely, something which he expressed was unfair. All eyes, particularly those of the 16 expelled Maluti-A-Phofung councillors, are now firmly fixed on Jordaan’s judgment. The Councillor’s lost their court bid last week after their Johannesburg Counsel failed to show up for proceedings. It was revealed the councillors had a weak case from the get-go. 

Their hopes, however, lies in Thursday's judgment. Attorney Hanno Bekker told OFM News if the PEC is illegal, then all decisions made by the PEC, including the expulsion of the Maluti-A-Phofung councillors, “are nullified automatically and only then can we try to revive this case”.

OFM News