Cry the beloved ANC – A response to Taabe

I read the article of Mr. Taabe in the previous edition of this publication, I must have read it four to five times, in an attempt to locate where in his piece, is he really providing facts to challenge my assertion that indeed, the ANC in this province is in the belly of a beast! Sadly, but not surprising, I did not find any such facts, except an attack on my integrity, by calling me all sorts of names: an opportunist, a fabricator, a factionalist, a concocter and a liar. Those who read the piece will agree with me, that this is a personal assault on my personality and integrity. I agonised whether I should respond to such an attack. I consulted a wide-range of cadres, both from the ANC (most of whom agreed with me that Taabe lost the plot!) as well as from the Congress Of The People (COPE), which I recently joined.

These consultations had nothing to do with any substance in Taabe’s article, but more with, if I respond, how do I avoid being personal, because it is my personality and integrity that Taabe put on trial in his piece? Needless to say, the piece had no head or tail! I decided to respond in kind!

 

For the benefit of readers, I must indicate my relationship with Taabe, in order for you to contextualise my response. This is a man whose furniture in 1995, I had to pay for, to save him the embarrassment of it being repossessed, money which, 14 years later, I have still not received yet! (And you know I need it Taabe, R12 000.00, no interests!).

This is a man that I, cde D.S. Mkhwanazi (which I am sure he now despises because his paymaster despises him too!) and the late Alan Gray, organised a job for at former Mpumalanga Parks Board in 1996! (To which he was disappointing because he did nothing except trying to chase the illusion of a high life-style!).

This is a man on whose behalf I pleaded with the then national leadership of the ANC, to re-instate his name on the list of ANC members to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), which had been removed at a last minute!

Conveniently he forgets to mention these facts in his piece, that this “ugly face” as he calls me amongst his buddies, saved him more than once, from total depression! It would not of course, go with his main thrust of his piece-to project me as a heartless monster!

 

In African tradition and culture, it is generally accepted that, our mothers shield and protect us, their children, with everything they have. It is also accepted that, once your mother despises you, to an extent of having to pour you with paraffin and burn you alive, it constitutes a life-time curse! That it is equal to dancing with the Devil himself!

I then asked myself, with this knowledge, how do I engage with a man who carries a lifetime curse with him? But on another level, how do I engage with a man who took a full four years to pass a simple matric at Emjindini Senior Secondary School? (We should campaign for the brother to be inducted in the guineas book of records, no learner at Emjindini has broken this record!).

How do I engage with a man who is a Technikon drop-out? (Former T.N.T.). I had honestly thought, that having already danced with the devil, will teach Taabe, never to wish to swim with sharks! Clearly, I was wrong! Taabe’s love of money, cronyism and opportunism, led him to pen that ill-fated piece, in a desperate attempt to win favours with his paymaster, “the hurricane” himself, in the faint hope that if and a big IF, his paymaster lands the premiership of Mpumalanga, Taabe will be his “spin doctor”! Which leads me to bemoan, that such an eventuality will be one of cronyism and opportunism: cry the beloved ANC! Inspite of its treatment of me, I still love the ANC, pre-Polokwane that is! Well, Taabe has chosen to swim with the sharks, so, let’s swim!

 

In his piece, Taabe says he is responding to my last piece in this publication, titled “Mpumalanga ANC is in the belly of a beast”! Taabe says this is a figment of my imagination, without any attempt to disprove of the facts I raised in that last piece! Again, allow me to induldge you with a summary of the facts that support my assertion, that indeed the ANC is in the belly of a beast: I said, after the show-grounds conference, the provincial chairperson of the ANC, the “hurricane” (or should I call him the name that you Taabe gave him before your financial Damascus- experience-“King Soros”?), promised that “all lobby groups are disbanded, let us all unite behind the ANC and build a strong ANC”! I said, soon after this otherwise-noble statement, the “hurricane” unleashed his henchmen, to engage in one of the most brutal forms of dividing the ANC, which amounted to revolutionary thuggery! This is what they did:

 

• v They went to branch general membership meetings of the ANC, told the membership of the ANC “we must crush all those who supported Lassy Chiwayo, out of the ANC and government.”,
• v They (the henchmen of the “hurricane”) ensured that all those who were in cde Lassy’s line-up were excluded from the P.W.C- a vindictive act which robbed the ANC of political experience that these cdes have and which killed even the slightest semblance of continuity in the PEC!
• v They circulated a very divisive list of so called “preferred” candidates for the various legislatures, leaving out most of the current crop of MPS, MPLS, NCOP members and MECs,
• v They waged a campaign to purge certain mayors, speakers and municipal managers, who were seen to have supported cde Lassy at the show-grounds conference. These were the municipalities that were targeted: Emalahleni, Mbombela, Nkomazi, and Umjindi. To this end, I did what I still believe was correct, by alerting the top six officials of the ANC about this divisive strategy. Sadly, Luthuli House’s intervention was too late for the Mbombela speaker, cde Jimmy Mohlala, who was assassinated earlier this year! The rest of the purge had to be put on ice, if not on fire, thanks to my alerting of the ANC leadership, which stoppage angered Taabe, because by now, Umjindi would be having a new mayor (Taabe’s buddy), a new speaker (Taabe’s buddy who has since resigned as a councilor-he could not hold his ambition for too long!), a new municipal manager (Taabe’s over-temperamental buddy), a new MMC (the “hurricane’s” ears and eyes at Umjindi) and a new chief financial officer (another Taabe’s buddy), Taabe himself would be a manager in the office of the municipal manager of Umjindi! For the record, I do not have any regrets about my role in stopping this madness, Taabe can go hang!
• v I said the “hurricane” can not be trusted with uniting the whole province, when he can not unite the ANC, as epotimised by branding his own deputy as “an emperor, a liar and FBI agent!”
• v I said the “hurricane” is using an official of a non-existing SANCO in the province, the ANCYL, and one delusional so-called Umkhonto wesizwe veteran, to run the ANC, thus reducing the provincial secretary into being “a political trophy”
• v I said BGM,s of the ANC are addressed by this trio, re-enforced by others, to the total exclusion of the incumbent REC,s,
• v I said attendance registers to BGMs, are cooked-up, people signing at home, signing even for the dead! My own signature was forged in at least two BGMs at which I was neither present nor invited!
• v And of course I raised the political acumen of the “hurricane” which Taabe knows it is suspect (I doubt if the “hurricane” knows at what stage of NDR are we at now!
• v Finally, I said the ANC is more divided in the province under the “hurricane’s” leadership than it even was under the bantustant bafoon! These are FACTS, supported by evidence! Taabe makes no attempt to challenge these but instead goes for my personality! What in the issues raised supra is a lie? What in these facts is a concoction? What in these facts is a conspiracy? Taabe says “I must play the ball and not the man”, I never played the man, I just raised plain facts! You, Taabe chose to play the man-me! These are facts, learn to deal with them or shut the hell-up!

 

Taabe accuses me of labeling other cdes in Barberton as double agents. He goes on to say I was exposed to be a liar on these accusations! Cry the beloved ANC! Yes I made those accusations-based on facts and evidence; and I have no regrets about it! Where and when was I exposed as a liar on these? I hope the paraffin wounds did not go deep into your brains boet! Here are the facts about double-agents in Barberton:

The late Parks Mankahlane, comes to Barberton to do under-ground work, he meets with key activists, including you (Taabe) and me, two hours after the meeting, the security branch descends at where he was accommodated, which was known by you and a few of your buddies!

An hour after managing to escape, he knocks at my shack, hides his material, including DLBs (if you know what that is), I take him to cde Bruno’s shack, at mid-night, I ask for money from cde Bruno, he complies without asking questions, I did not know how to drive, Bruno organizes a driver, I use the money to pay for the driver and his vehicle. He takes me and Parks to cde Adam Myanga’s place in Ka-Nyamazane, I leave him there, I return to my shack about four o’clock in the morning-Parks is saved from the jaws of the security branch.

The next day I received a brutal tongue lashing from some of your buddies and yourself-for “not consulting anyone when moving Parks”! Ring a bell? or you have opted to suffer selective amnesia? Cde Bruno is still alive, he does not know where I took Parks to-until now if he will read this article! Why don’t you go ask him what were the circumstances that led to me whisking Parks away from his death-trap? Do you consider him (Bruno) a liar, a concocter and fabricator too? You can use the opportunity to ask him if he remembers “when you exposed me”!

 

Cde Lizo (Fish Mahlalela) is deployed to the front, he carries out certain missions and is lured to stay at one of your buddy’s place in Barberton, and suddenly the place is frequently visited by the Rev. Muntukaziboni Ndlangamandla, Fish carries out his last assignment and only one of your buddy’s at home and Ndlangamandla are privy to his hide-out at Matsulu.

On the night he is supposed to leave Mzansi via Mozambique, your home buddy, during the day, delays by six hours, to deliver the resources needed for Fish to travel. That same day, he is surrounded by the security branch and is detained! Unknown to your home-town buddy and Ndlangamandla, his DLB and the one he had to recover which belonged to cde “Dobbie” Magagula, which was taken by some Mbuzini locals when cde ‘Dobbie” died in a skirmish with the SADF, had been buried by myself, Fish and the late Fikile Mashele, in a certain river!

When news came through that Fish had been betrayed and detained, I went to dig-up both DLBs, so that even if he is severely tortured, the DLBs will be safe! Fikile is gone, Fish is still alive and you both are in the ANC, why don’t you go and ask him if there were no double-agents in Barberton? And why don’t you ask him who sold him out?

Taabe, go to the truth and reconciliation commission, apply for the submissions of the security branch files, Read them and write another piece, explaining who, in Barberton, went by the code-name “Maxwell Xulu”! If the justice department refuses you such access, try use the provisions of the Access to Information Act, and you will discover just how many like you, we had in Barberton!

So, Taabe don’t talk about things you have no knowledge of, not that I blame you, only a person who can take four years to complete matric has such a small and naive mind like yours!

While still at this, ask your home-town buddy who was close to Ndlangamandla, about the bank account, at Barclays Bank in Mbabane Swaziland, which he (your buddy) and Ndlangamandla were operating, a US Dollars account whose income came from the Reagan and later Bush senior administrations (a country that never, ever funded ANC activities or any anti-apartheid movement), ask him why they started the “Institute for Christian unity (I.C.U) when the ANC was dealing with the south African Council of churches?

Once you get these answers, tell your paymaster, never again to send a boy to try and do a man’s work! So, yes, there were double-agents in Barberton and I don’t regret doing my part to minimise their damage! I was never going to talk about these things in public, you asked for it by insulting me!

 

Taabe, in his piece accuses me of causing such “destibilisation” at local government governance in Barberton, which led to ANC councilors resigning. I am not sure what is your game plan here, still playing the “spin doctor” or outright-foolishness? I never forced anyone to resign! I raised an issue of principle: namely that once the ANC caucus takes a decision, only it can change it, not one of us deciding with an opposition councilor to change it. But then, if one is innocent, why resign? I am not responsible for anyone resigning!

 

Taabe castigates me for the ANC’s Zithabiseni commission of enquiry. He goes on to place on record, historically incorrect information about my ANC membership. Lets refresh your obviously small mind, dear Mr. Taabe: I did not start the Zithabiseni commission of enquiry, it was started by the ANC’s (N.W.C (National Working Committee). Some of its findings I still don’t know. That commission never suspended my ANC membership “for five years” as you claim, no! It said: “cde James Nkambule be advised to resign as a provincial secretary of the ANCYL. That he (me) should not hold an elective office in any of our structures, for a period of three years. That the ANCYL puts in place, a political rehabilitation programme, during these three years” (there is no suspension of membership here).

This was in November 1998. Mathematics, which I didn’t do at high school, but still passed my matric at the first attempt, indicate that three years would be in 2001 November! As this period was approaching, some in the ANCYL, fearing that I may come-back to be provincial secretary, charged me for saying “Minister Pennuel Maduna behaved like an un-educated person when he came with the assets forfeiture unit, to attach my properties”. (This is a Sunday school picnic compared to what Mr. Malema calls ANC leaders today!).

Clearly this was a way of derailing my come-back. At the same time, I discovered that the decision to dismiss me from the public service, was taken at a PEC meeting of the ANC, which is grossly illegal! In anger and disappointment, I resigned from both the ANC and the ANCYL, before the ANCYL could even put its clumsy charges before me! I re-joined the ANC only, on January 8^th 2002.

Now I am asking myself, who is a liar here? The ANC only charged me in 2006, for owning a newspaper that carried an article headlined: “inside the ANC’s Mpumalanga’s axis of political evil”! This article as early as then, identified “the hurricane” as leading a powerfull divisive network, preparing to oust Makwetla and have access to state resources.

That disciplinary hearing found me guilty in absentia and expelled me from the ANC. An expulsion which was reversed on appeal in September 2006, restoring my full membership rights. Now, even a matric drop-out veteran and a Technikon drop-out like you, will know that once an upper structure turns down a decision of the lower structure, the only decision that stands is the one of the upper structure! Again, who is a liar here? Where is any concoction? Where is fabrication?

 

Taabe, like a desperate scavenger, preys on the long-closed issue of the plot to remove President Thabo Mbeki, both as head of the ANC and of the Republic. He goes on, in true Taabe style, to claim to know how this matter was resolved! You don’t have the slightest clue of how this matter was resolved! Except what you read in the papers.

I made my mistakes in handling this matter and publicly apologised for it. The “spin doctor” in you, tells you: re-open it! It was closed Taabe and I don’t owe you any explanation on how it was closed! But it never led to the “ANC laying charges against me”! Where have you been broer? But still, a coup did take place in September 2008! I leave it to the readers to determine whether any plot existed or not!

 

Taabe goes on to talk about “missed opportunities”, which only he knows what he is talking about! He goes on to say he is “sure” that those cdes I supported prior the show-grounds conference are “not proud” that I supported them!

This is where I continue to learn more about why you are a matric veteran, you always think your word is gospel! Let’s give you the benefit of doubt and say they “are not proud”.

At least my support for them was sincere and genuine. Unlike you, I did not attend delegate’s caucuses of cde Lassy Chiwayo, and under-cover of darkness, drive to Vlaakplaas to report to your paymaster!

At least now we know that you are one of those who betrayed cde Lassy going into that conference! Suddenly DD is “calm, cultivated and cool”? When did you realise these great “qualities”? Before or after the conference?

Your love for money is unbelievable! You also try to lecture me about how premiers are chosen in the ANC-save it Taabe for your dumb branch leaders in Barberton, because I know how premiers are chosen in the ANC, I also know that to date Mpumalanga has no “premier-elect”.

Taabe says I’m being “opportunistic” by singing the praises of cde Lassy Chiwayo and others. I am not! If a cde is good, they are good! Regardless of whether there were differences with them or not! You are just jealous because you are not one of them, yet you claim to be in their league-get a life man, you will never in 50 years reach their level!

Frazer was right, you can do anything for money including selling your soul, that is why your political back-bone is like pudding and jelly! The highest bidder always gets your loyalty! You were only disappointed that cde Lassy does not believe in patronage, that is why you sold him out, more like you are still to emerge!

 

Taabe touches on an important point of moral values, he gives me a long lecture about how I should uphold these. Which values must I emulate from a “great leader” like you? That it is okay to say of your own cde “I want my parliamentary seat and my constituency office back, I can’t be replaced by someone who got into parliament on account of some un-explained and mysterious disability”? Are these the values you want me to uphold? That it is okay to bang your wife’s head on the walls during a drunken binge and brag about it in public? That it is okay to have extra-marital affairs with school girls young enough to be your daughters?

That it is okay to pretend that you have finally accepted cde Richard Lukhele as Umjindi mayor while under-cover of darkness you plot his down fall? That it is okay to pretend that you have accepted the Municipal Manager and Chief Financial Officer of Umjindi, while under-cover of darkness you leak dirt and falsehoods against them? That it is okay to defraud our parliament? That it is okay to treat your wife like a 21^st century slave? That it is okay to pretend that you have money by driving two luxury vehicles but still hoping from one rental place to the next? That it is okay to delude your children and make them think “daddy” is loaded when they have no home of their own? I think I am better off without your moral values, because they make me want to puke!

 

And still on values, our home town is ravaged by HIV and AIDS. As the community leader you claim to be, I challenge you and your paymaster “the hurricane”, to take a public HIV test with me and declare the results in public! Are you both men enough to take up this challenge? You are correct Taabe, in a relationship, if you think the love is fading and you notice a dramatic difference on the other partner, surely, the relationship is bound to break-down. Partners will blame each other, now, why don’t you take your own advice and free this decent lady you are holding captive like a 21^st century slave? The one you are ashamed of being seen in public with? The one who is forced to hike while her so-called hubby cruises in two luxury vehicles? The one you never visit when hospitalised? Is this not “love fading”? Take your own advice or go hang!

 

Yes, I have made my own mistakes in my private life, but I swear on my mother’s grave, none of the three women I shared life with, as husband and wife (not at the same time, because I am not a polygamist!) suffered the violence you meet-out to someone you claim to love! As a matter of fact, if there is anything I will live to ever regret, is allowing my emotions to take over my mind and thus allowed one of them to slip through my fingers, because in my heart of hearts, I know that I may have allowed my soul-mate to slip-away from me! But it had nothing to do with violence!

I know, the maverick you are, you will say “atleast I don’t have to face a lonely bed every night”! You will be right, it is not a good feeling, but share that bed with someone you love, not a 21^st century slave! I go to this bed, alone, because I think I may have over-reacted-emotionally that is, with one of my wives (I don’t call them ex-because in our tradition, there’s no ex-wife!) but my conscience is clear that I do not pretend to love someone when I don’t!

 

I thought you were a churchman now. And scriptures do not permit hypocrasy. Or do you go to church so that your funeral maybe colorful? If not, why fool the readers of this publication, by “wishing me a speedy recovery”, when you know you don’t mean it? You don’t visit me, and you have twice pronounced my death! You are only fooling yourself if you think ‘wishing me a speedy recovery” will make the readers think “ag shame he cares about this guy”!

Don’t do that Taabe, its evil! But so you know, I have no regrets with all that is good that I assisted you with in my life! Be it the furniture, the job at Parks Board and pleading for you to be given a chance to go to parliament, this inspite of you pronouncing my death twice, calling me “that ugly face” and giving my 11 years old son, the scare of his life by side-swinging your luxury vehicle towards him!

Even with your other buddy, for whom I forced cde Craig Padayachee then MEC of Housing, to give him a job, a job which he today uses to inflict poverty on my children, by deliberately refusing to pay me money which I worked for, for reasons only known to him, this inspite of the fact that when I was working and not ill, I assisted him too during his most hour of need, with figures you don’t want to know, which I have not been given back yet! Tell him too, I hold no grudge!

But please don’t turn my illness into a joke, as you have done with the disability of your own cde, don’t mock me by “wishing me speedy recovery”, you know very well, you don’t mean it!

 

Taabe, I have left the ANC now, which must delight your small mind and your buddies in Barberton. Now you have it all to yourselves, let’s see what you will make of it, now that the “ugly face” is gone! You are right, you have a job to do, so do I! I will recover Taabe, without your mocking “speedy recovery wishes”! While recovering, I will do what I can, within the confinement of illness, to assist the Congress Of the People, to end your arrogance of power and to set our people free from the jaws of a budding dictatorship, as represented by your likes. As for you and your buddies I wish you the following: don’t get sick, let none of your children get sick, don’t die, live forever and ever AMEN!

 

We will meet at the trenches!

 

James Vusumuzi Nkambule

Umjindi COPE leader, writing in my personal capacity