Pule Mabe at the ANC’s Eastern Cape conference.
- The ANC policy conference is expected to start on Thursday and offer “robust debates”.
- The conference faced some threats of disruptions because the ANC has struggled to pay its workers.
- ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe claims the party has paid some of its employees, but staffers dispute this.
The ANC claims it has begun paying some of its employees as the party faces possible protests ahead of its policy conference, which starts on Thursday.
ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said the party’s treasurer-general, Paul Mashatile, communicated with staff and that some had begun receiving payments for outstanding salaries.
On Monday, ANC staffers picketed outside provincial offices and at the party’s headquarters at Luthuli House.
The employees had not been paid for two months.
The staffers questioned why the party had the funds to finance its policy conference, but no money to pay its workers.
Mabe dismissed any possibility that disgruntled workers could disrupt the conference.
He said Mashatile had committed to paying the staffers.
READ | Unpaid ANC staff threaten court action, start go-slow ahead of party’s policy conference
“The treasurer-general is dealing with that, and commitment has been made already. Those using our local bank would already have begun receiving their monies. Issues such as medical aid have already been addressed,” Mabe said.
An ANC staff representative, Mandla Qwane, told News24 he did not know of any staff member who had been paid, including himself.
The ANC has long blamed the introduction of the Political Funding Act for its funding troubles.
Mabe repeated the same line on Thursday at Nasrec in Joburg.
“We operate in a very hostile, political funding-raising environment. If only the fund-raising environment was a healthy one… you would know that coming out of state capture, and the Political Funding Act has impacted what the ANC can mobilise. It takes a lot of money to run the ANC,” Mabe said.
READ | Cash-strapped ANC proposes amendments to Political Party Funding Act
Mabe said the party was ready to begin “robust debates”.
Party leader Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to open the gathering on Thursday.
A line-up of commissions is expected until Sunday.
There will be over 2 000 guests and delegates attending the conference.
Some of the hot-button issues the party’s members will have to debate include corruption, migration and social problems, such as crime and the economy.
“We need to develop programmes that will benefit the citizens of the country, come up with policies that matter to them. We expect robust debates,” Mabe said.
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