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The ANC Mangaung regional chairperson, Lawrance Mathae, who lost to Davies, on Friday announced that eight councillors, including Deputy Mayor Mapaseka Nokoane-Mothibi, among others, have been expelled from the party with immediate effect. 

The ANC alleged that these councillors defied the party mandate and voted with the opposition to vote for Davies as the new speaker of the council. The ruling ANC has the majority council members, namely 51, and the rest is made up of opposition parties, including the EFF, DA, and Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus).

During a media briefing held at the party's headquarters at Kaizer Sebothelo House in Bloemfontein, Mathae said the councillors were expelled as per the party's constitution. They have the right to appeal the verdict.

Meanwhile, Mathae also announced that the party has referred the matter of the council sitting, during which Davies was elected as the speaker, for legal advice to take it to court.

"The Regional Executive Committee (REC) takes note of and is in concurrence with the statement of the Provincial Executive Committee (PEC), which has raised the illegality of the council sitting on 29 March, which we are equally convinced was procedurally flawed and its outcomes, and therefore, borders on potentially illegal. As indicated by the ANC PEC, the REC will also await the legal counsel and advise to determine the appropriate remedy on this matter," Mathae added.

A source in the upper echelons of the party said the party officials have since noticed a quite distinct pattern with members who voted against the ANC.

The source says the defiance started in 2021 when party members first voted for the removal of former Mangaung Metro Municipal Manager (MM) Sello More.

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The group is also said to have voted against ANC directives that a particular item should not be discussed in the House but should rather be referred back to the ANC caucus for further discussion but also defied this directive and went ahead to vote on it. Later on, the councillors are alleged to have voted against two budgets presented by the former embattled Mayor Mxolisi Siyonzana.

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The source says as if matters were not worse enough, this clique of councillors then went on to vote with the DA to remove council whip Vumile Nikelo, in a motion of no confidence.

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The source added that there has been a pattern that needs to be nipped in the bud.

The ANC Secretary-General (SG), Fikile Mbalula, vowed that the party will do all in its power to get to the bottom of which party members voted with the opposition in the Mangaung Metro.

ALSO READ: ANC vows to deal with party members who voted with DA in Mangaung

He said they will not harbour people within the party ranks who go against the mandate of the ANC and vote with the opposition. Mbalula said if needs be, a polygraph test should be used to identify the individuals who voted with the DA. It will be used but within the prescripts of the law.

“We are fully aware of the fact that the people’s mandate has seriously been sabotaged in Mangaung by delinquent ANC councillors, giving the mandate to the DA. They do not deserve it. So, we will go to the people who have elected us if the need arises. If some are prepared to repent, we will look at it case by case but the incorrigible ones have to face consequences. They must be disciplined. We have done that in Mkhondo recently, in Mpumalanga. We have done that and we went to the people and won. We are now in control of Mkhondo. 

"We are not going to surrender power because we know what it means to those people of Mangaung who have voted for the ANC and some individuals somewhere with their factional or self-interest have decided to throw that out of the window. So we are dealing with that matter. But I can assure everyone that the ANC will be firm, even if there will be a temporary inconvenience for us. We will be firm in terms of dealing with ill-discipline in the organisation,” Mbalula added.

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