ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula has defended his decision to use a private yacht belonging to a Cape Town businessman who has scored lucrative state tenders. He says he did not use the luxury yacht to galavant but for party work since he had a busy schedule during his trip to Robben Island.  Mbalula claims his decision to use the yacht was neither a gift nor evidence that he is somewhat linked to corruption.  The embattled head of the governing party’s…

The recently elected African National Congress (ANC) councillor for Ward 30 in the Elias Motsoaledi Local Municipality, Sekhukhune, Limpopo, has been arrested on charges of extortion and the illegal closure of a local mine. Yalda Matlabane Tobias Malope, who secured his position during the by-election held on December 11, 2024, was taken into custody by the police on January 9, 2025. The South African Police Service (SAPS) reported that on January 9, 2025, at approximately 07:00, Roossenekal Police apprehended eight…

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Public Works and Infrastructure has expelled a senior official who illegally awarded more than R1 billion worth of tenders to a single company. It said its director for supply chain management (SCM) awarded 29 tenders to a single service provider in the space of two years — amounting to 60% of the department’s annual budget. Released on Wednesday, January 8, the department’s statement did not name the official in question but his identity is known to…

Former President Jacob Zuma has reignited his fight to claw back his ANC membership, giving the party an ultimatum to reinstate him or face legal action. In a letter of demand issued on Wednesday, January 8 and addressed to ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula, Zuma’s lawyers say his expulsion is illegal and he must be allowed back to his former political home before the end of this month. The ANC expelled Zuma late last year for founding and leading the…

The ANC in Mpumalanga province has made a dramatic U-turn on its earlier decision barring members from attending the governing party’s January 8 rally in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, this weekend.  This was after an earlier communique said branches should not travel to the Mother City as the chosen venue is too small to accommodate everyone. In the communique dated 6 January 2025 and signed by Muzi Chirwa, the provincial secretary, branches were told to focus on planning for the upcoming…

ANC Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s foray into Khayelitsha township in Cape Town turned into a political disaster when a resident tried to eject him and his party’s delegation conducting a door to door campaign ahead of the January 8 rally. The embarrassing spectacle was beamed live on Newzroom Afrika on Tuesday, January 7, as the 24-hour news channel was tailing Mashatile and his ANC delegation in the area. The governing party is set to hold a rally at the Nelson…

South African Communist Party (SACP) General Secretary Solly Mapaila has defended the party’s decision to dump the ANC and contest elections independently, saying they sought to protect the revolution rather than act as observers when the Democratic Alliance (DA) has more influence in government than the communist party. He says the SACP wants to “tackle capital directly”, improve the lives of South Africans and strengthen the ANC-led alliance rather than weaken it, as critics claim. Mapaila spoke at the Avalon…

The chairperson of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) in KwaZulu-Natal, Thami Ntuli, has downplayed the reported tensions between the MEC for CoGTA, Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi and the ANC in the government of provincial unity (GPU) and in the province. Ntuli, who is also the premier in the GPU, says it was always expected that there would be differences since they come from different political parties. The provincial IFP leader was responding to a question from the African Times during a…

The African National Congress (ANC) and UNISA’s National Student Representatives Council (NSRC) have called on the institution’s community to rally behind re-appointed Vice Chancellor Professor Puleng LenKabula in her second term. Together with the Academic and Professional Staff Association (APSA) of South African Universities, South Africa’s governing party and student body NSRC have expressed support for the council’s decision to extend Professor LenKabula’s term. They also celebrated the achievements made under her administration since 2021. In a media statement released…

Long snaking queues in the baking sun formed around Eskom offices and service centres in many black working-class areas. Many people arrived at the offices the previous night sleeping over to avoid the stampede, including the elderly, frail and sick. A man died in Orlando Community Hall. He was 59-year-old Joseph Fikile Busakwe, he was number 486 in the queue. Like all the other people standing in line, he had gone in a panic to make sure that his electricity…