[ad_1]
- An ANC delegation is on a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe.
- Dakota Legoete, a member of the ANC NEC, said Secretary General Ace Magashule will lead the delegation.
- He said the ANC was also open to meeting with opposition party leaders.
The ANC has sent a delegation of senior leaders to crisis-stricken Zimbabwe for talks amid tensions in the neighboring state.
Dakota Legoete, a member of the National Executive Committee (NEC), told News24 that the delegation, led by Secretary General Ace Magashule, is expected to leave Tuesday night to meet with leaders of Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu party. PF.
The delegation includes Lindiwe Zulu, Tony Yengeni, Nosiwe Mapisa-Nqakula, and Nomvula Mokonyane.
“The ANC delegates will enter into a party-to-party relationship to find a common understanding and solution to the challenges facing both South Africa and Zimbabwe, and discuss how it impacts the economic, political and social stability of both countries,” he said. .
READ | It was a waste of jet fuel: Zimbabwean journalist on Ramaphosa’s special envoy
Legoete said that at least five million Zimbabweans lived in South Africa. He added that if the matter was not taken seriously diplomatically, it had the potential to be catastrophic.
Mission
The visit comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa sent former National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete and former Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi to the neighboring country for talks with the ruling party. However, the mission was deemed a failure.
Opposition leaders from the MDC and NGOs frowned at the visit from South Africa, claiming they had not received the attention of Ramaphosa envoys.
READ | The regime strikes whenever there is a threat to its grip on power: Zimbabwean journalist
Tensions in Zimbabwe between the government and citizens rose after journalists and leaders of opposition parties were reportedly jailed.
Most notable was journalist Hopewell Chin’ono, who was arrested after investigating Zimbabwe’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Legoete said a series of meetings were planned and that the ANC was open to engaging with opposition parties on the crisis facing Zimbabwe.
“There are a series of meetings and we are open to getting involved with other parties, but it is not up to us to conclude on the agenda. This is a fact-finding mission to find out what is happening and find an amicable solution.
“We are a political party and a liberation movement, the weight of responsibility is to ensure that we do not compromise the integrity of the South African government intervention.
“We are not replacing government interventions. We are speaking to Zanu-PF with respect and decorum,” he said.
