The ANC, the historic ruling party in South Africa, has suspended its secretary general Ace Magashule, accused of corruption.

"You are hereby temporarily suspended from May 3, 2021 until the final outcome of your legal proceedings," Jessie Duarte, Deputy Secretary General of the African National Congress, informed in a letter to Ace Magashule, indicating that this decision would be "in the best interest" of the party.   

But Ace Magashule, the first senior party official to be sidelined in the wake of the ANC's new anti-corruption policy, said he was not going anywhere.

Instead of withdrawing, he in turn summoned Cyril Ramaphosa to temporarily step down as president, invoking his powers as secretary general of the party to do so.

At the end of March, Ace Magashule, 61, was given a thirty-day ultimatum to step down after being accused of embezzling public funds while serving as prime minister of the Free State, one of South Africa's nine provinces. .

The politician refused to resign, forcing the party to suspend him.    

Strong sign     

Nelson Mandela's African National Congress (ANC), entangled up to the neck in corruption cases for several years, is seeking to rebuild a virginity in the face of disgusted voters.

But the internal supporters of Elias Magashule, nicknamed "Ace", are numerous, especially among the supporters of former president Jacob Zuma, who himself drags batteries of pots and pans. 

"This is the first really strong sign that the ANC is ready to clean up its ranks. It still has a long way to go, but it is an absolute prerequisite to tackle corruption," he said. is delighted with AFP David Lewis, director of the NGO Corruption Watch. 

"They seemed pretty determined, but they are also masters in the art of second and third chances," he said, echoing the many skeptics who feared that the ANC would not go to the end. and slide "Ace" under the mat without confronting him.

A victory for the president

"Uncle Cyril", as South Africans call him because of his bonhomie and his apparent goodwill, seemed for a long time isolated in this standoff with the 60-year-old stainless, secretary general of the ANC since 2017. But its suspension, and the fact that enough ANC leaders give their approval to make it possible, is a treat for the president who has vowed to end the scourge of corruption.

"This is a major political victory for the president," Aleix Montana, researcher at the Verisk Maplecroft institute, told AFP.

Ace dismissed, the president will be able to "strengthen his leadership on the party, giving it the political space necessary to implement its reforms."

The sidelining of Magashule represents "a consolidation of the power of President Ramaphosa within the ANC" in the current factional struggles, which "undermine governance", between his current and that of "the former president Jacob Zuma and Ace Magashule on the other hand ", analyzes the De Klerk Foundation.

It is also "a victory for the ANC itself", affirms to AFP the political scientist Mcebisi Ndletyana, and "the demonstration that when the citizens express themselves and make themselves heard, they can move the lines".

Gangster reign

The party had given "Ace," a furrowed brow and perpetual scowl, shaved head and strict glasses, 30 days to go on his own.

But the former boss of the ANC in the province of the Free State (Center), accused by an explosive biography entitled "Gangster State" of having reigned there as a mafia, let the deadline pass last week, forcing the party to take its responsibilities.

His suspension, which was notified to him by a letter signed by his deputy, Jessie Duarte, on behalf of the ANC, took effect on Monday and runs until the end of his trial, we learned on Wednesday when this letter leaked to the media. 

A meeting of the party leadership on Monday "reaffirmed" its decision taken at the end of March to require any member who is criminally prosecuted "for corruption or other serious crimes" to resign or face suspension.

"You have been indicted and summoned to appear in court for corruption and fraud, theft and money laundering," recalls the letter.

Many Internet users stressed that this suspension did not deprive the person concerned of his salary, which the letter confirms. 

Currently on bail, "Ace" will be tried in August alongside about fifteen co-accused, for having notably stolen public money set aside in 2014 to remove asbestos from social housing, when he was Prime Minister of Free State.

The work never took place: investigators estimate that the equivalent of nearly ten million euros were pocketed.

With AFP

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