Midrand, April 23 -- STRONG fears of an ANC post-election purge of vocal Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma supporters by the camp backing the incumbent President Cyril Ramaphosa have taken root in the ruling party, it has emerged.

ANC Youth League (ANCYL) national executive committee (NEC) member and National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) chairperson Sifiso Mtsweni, said an "unfortunate trend" in the ANC's post-election period where it has appeared that revenge was being exacted on key ANC figures who openly backed Dlamini Zuma for the ANC presidency in the run up to the party's December elective conference.

Mtsweni "hoped" the ANC and its incumbent leadership would not travel down the path of isolating known Dlamini Zuma supporters. "That whole perception of people being purged is something we need to look at and not move towards that because that perception can actually find traction," Mtsweni said.

"At some point as you know in the Free State there were issues, in KwaZulu-Natal you don't have provincial structures. And in the North West this is what happening. So we certainly hope that there is no such thing and trust that the leadership of the ANC will not move down that path.

"Certainly in the North West, one would hope that this is not linked to conference issues," Mtsweni said. This comes as under fire North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo is standing defiant in the face of pressure for him to resign.

Mahumapelo recently claimed Ramaphosa backers wanted to force him out of office because of his support for Dlamini Zuma, despite some members of the ANC provincial legislature caucus and community members wanting to see the back of him over allegations of corruption.

Mtsweni shared his reflections on the league's nomination of Dlamini Zuma at the ANC conference. He said the league did not regret what he described as a "noble" cause to call for the greater inclusion of women in positions of power in the ruling party. "We can never apologise for the choices that we made. The choice of the ANC electing a female president after 106 years of its existence was quite a noble cause and it's a cause that we must never abandon.

"The ANCYL in taking the decision we need a female leader in the ANC was not wrong. There's nothing wrong that we did," Mtsweni said. An internal rift between ANCYL president Collen Maine and deputy secretary-general Thandi Moraka has taken root in the league's top brass following Maine's disclosure that he was introduced to the Gupta brothers through Mahumapelo. Moraka subsequently called for Maine to resign. It is for this that Mtsweni said the league's NEC meeting at the weekend would look into the

matter. "The deputy secretary-general and other comrades might have expressed their personal views but as I said before, the ANCYL will meet and in that meeting we'll be able to gain and understanding an appreciation of what is happening," he said.

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