City Press. 20/1/08 — 01/21/2008
MOTLANTHE AS SECOND DEPUTY PRESIDENT?
S'Thembiso Msomi
New ANC leadership drive to capture levers of government

WILL President Thabo Mbeki sacrifice his deputy, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, to accommodate the demand by the Jacob Zuma-led ANC for Kgalema Motlanthe [newly elected as ANC deputy president] to join government? Or will he resist and reshuffle the lower end of Cabinet and offer Motlanthe a sufficiently senior position to allow him to learn the ropes of governance between now and May next year [ahead of the general election – ed]? These were the two critical questions facing the ANC National Executive Committee lekgotla (meeting) as it met Mbeki and his Cabinet last week. It was the first face-to-face meeting between government members and the newly-elected NEC. Discussions with several leaders in the ANC and in government revealed that the NEC was on a drive to capture the strategic levers of power and influence in the state. They said that besides the decision on Motlanthe, [ANC Chief Whip] Isaac Mogase would be kicked out as Chief Whip in Parliament. He might be replaced by NEC member and Zuma lieutenant, Nathi Mthethwa. This would mean that Zuma’s group would control Parliament through National Assembly Speaker and party national chairperson, Baleka Mbete, and Mthethwa.
 
ANC to oversee 'state' members?
As ANC deputy president, Motlanthe will also be in charge of the party's Deployment Committee. Its powers are likely to be broadened to extend to overseeing the work of party cadres deployed in parastatals and other state-owned institutions. It was not clear at the time of going to press whether Motlanthe's issue was officially discussed by the lekgotla. However, insiders say there is unanimity between the NEC and government about the need to get Motlanthe - who is, in effect, unemployed – into Cabinet. They argue that this will give him experience in governance and ensure a smooth transition when Mbeki’s term of office ends next year. The issue in dispute between government and the ANC leadership regards the position in which he will be deployed.
 
How Motlanthe might become Deputy President
The ANC will want Motlanthe as Deputy President of the country. The demand was for him to become the second Deputy President, a situation that had existed in the new transitional government when FW de Klerk and Mbeki deputised for Nelson Mandela. However, it has since emerged that the Constitution does not allow for two deputies any more. Section 91 (1) of the Constitution states that ‘the Cabinet consists of the President as head of the Cabinet, a Deputy President and ministers’. Subsection 2 states the president must appoint ‘the Deputy President’ while Subsection 3 (a) states ‘the President must select the Deputy President from among the members of the National Assembly’.

A senior legal official in government said the fact that the Constitution mentioned 'a' Deputy President 'did not necessarily mean it limits the number to only one'. The official said the clause was open to the interpretation that it would allow for a second, and maybe even more, to be appointed. But Unisa academic and constitutional law expert Professor Shadrack Gutto disputed this. He said the "plain reading of the Constitution provides for only one deputy. It is difficult to read it in an expansive way. The 'a' in Section 91 (1) is very important as it effectively limits the numbers."
 
Haggling over the Deputy Presidency
Mbeki led the delegation of Cabinet members in the meeting with the NEC. A smaller meeting was planned where the demand was to be made for Motlanthe to be appointed as Deputy President. Cabinet members, most of whom are no longer on the NEC, were also invited. They had apparently asked if they should bring reports but were told it was only a discussion. It emerged that there was also no unanimity in the NEC about whether Mbeki should be ordered to appoint Motlanthe as deputy and nothing else. An NEC member said while the Deputy President position was the first choice, members would accept a Cabinet appointment as long as it held the power to influence things. However, it also emerged that people close to Motlanthe want the deputy position as a non-negotiable. This is apparently because they see it as giving him an advantage for a possible move into the number one spot.
 
Demise of Deputy President Mlambo-Ngcuka?
If this view holds, and Mbeki is confronted with a non-negotiable demand, it might herald a period of conflict with the NEC or spell the end of Mlambo-Ngcuka’s political career. A source close to her said this was not being considered. However, this does not mean it might not happen. She is married to Bulelani Ngcuka, enemy number one of the Zuma camp. Her demise will please Zuma and his supporters. It will also be a sign of the camp’s power. [Note: Bulelani Ngcuka was head of the investigation by the National Prosecuting Authority into Schabir Shaik, Zuma's financial benefactor who is serving a 15-year sentence in prison for corruption and fraud. Schabir Shaik's brother, Shamin 'Chippy' Shaik – currently in Australia – was at the centre of the 1998/99 arms deal as head of Procurement in the Department of Defence. He lied to Parliament that he had recused himself from committee meetings discussing award of contract to a company owned by his brother Schabir, but was not prosecuted. Ngcuka also initiated corruption prosecutions against Zuma and former ANC Chief Whip Tony Yengeni, who previously had been chairman of the parliamentary Standing Committee for Defence during the arms deal negotiations. Charges were withdrawn against Zuma following Ngcuka's initial prosecution, but Yengeni was sentenced to four years' imprisonment, of which he served less than five months. When Zuma was elected president of the ANC at its national conference last month, Yengeni and his wife - each of whom received very favourable deals on expensive cars from DaimlerChrysler, a beneficiary of the arms deal - were also elected to the ANC's National Executive Committee. Zuma and Yengeni both sit on the ANC's most senior administrative body, the National Working Committee. - Ed].
 
Motlanthe and the system of the parliamentary 'party list'
Motlanthe's appointment to either position will have to be preceded by his insertion into the ANC parliamentary list and being sworn in as a Member of Parliament. This could be done when Parliament starts in the first week of February. City Press understands that Motlanthe had been asked to be on the Mbeki list before the Polokwane conference and was offered the position of chairperson. He refused, saying he would only accept the position of ANC deputy president or president. However, Mbeki loyalists said at the time that no matter what list he was on, he was destined to play an important role in government after 2009. They said provision had been made for him to be in Cabinet and Mbeki’s delay in replacing several deputies was to allow for a Cabinet reshuffle which would make room for Motlanthe and others. It can therefore be taken as a sign that his appointment is a given. The only question is in what position Motlanthe will be deployed. [Note: Under South Africa's electoral law incorporated in its Constitution of 1994, a system of complete proportional representation gives power to party managers to replace and redeploy MPs at will. Access to Parliament is determined by a candidate's placing on a 'party list', which is entirely under the control of the party bosses. Local communities have no means of holding an MP to account, since the electoral law provides no effective place for constituencies. After her son's defeat in the ANC elections for party president last month, President Mbeki's mother, Mrs Epainette Mbeki, called for a new electoral law in which MPs could be held accountable by constituents. - Ed].
 
The problem of two Deputy Presidents
Professor Gutto says even if it is possible to have two deputies, it would be wrong. 'Two deputies now will be disastrous. It will raise questions about whether the other has been demoted. There will be war over who does what and this will create destabilisation. I don’t think the NEC can demand an appointment as Deputy President of the country or the replacement of the present deputy. But the idea of Motlanthe having some experience at the level of Cabinet is critical for the future. If a credible [corruption] case is made against Zuma and it goes ahead, the other top six members of the NEC have no experience in governance at a higher level. Motlanthe can, and should, be accommodated in Cabinet and I am sure President Mbeki can look at this favourably. It is patriotic and constitutional to bring him in.’ City Press has learnt that among the others who might be moving to Tshwane [seat of government, the former Pretoria] is Free State ANC chief Ace Magashule. This week, he ensured that Premier Beatrice Marshoff appointed two of his confidants into her provincial Cabinet.
 
[Note: Professor Shadrack Gutto is director of the Centre for African Renaissance Studies at the University of South Africa. He was previously associate professor in the School of Law at the University of the Witwatersrand].