Johannesburg - Beating on table tops and chanting "Change!" while signalling a change sign and saying "Anibuyi", most delegates from KwaZulu-Natal province say they have come to do only one thing — and that is to see President Cyril Ramaphosa go.
They say Ramaphosa protects Indians and white people while collapsing ANC structures to ensure that he wins at all costs.
One of the delegates from the province told The Star that she and other members know what to do and will do so, even if they don't succeed in their call vote to kick Ramaphosa out of the party leadership, they will do what they can through their votes.
"Our mandate is clear, and that is to vote Ramaphosa out of office. He does not care about us but cares about Indians and white people. He has collapsed this party, with all of its structures disbanded. We will do what we can to vote him out, and if he uses money to buy the conference, there would be nothing else for us to do, but we would have done what was in our power to do," she said.
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KZN delegates want President out as they sing songs against President Cyril Ramaphosa to step aside pic.twitter.com/Uww1C62cs5
Another delegate from the same province shared the same sentiment, saying they are not prepared to be led by an Ankole, referring to Ramaphosa's business in selling game.
Some have called for Ramaphosa to step down, claiming that Phala Phala must step down as he prepares to address the session. They also shouted Zuma at the same time former president Jacob Zuma was ushered into the venue, singing "Wenzeni uZuma," resulting in Ramaphosa stopping his address.
"We are not prepared to be led by Mr Ankole. We want change, and we will get change by using our votes to get the change we want," he said.
The province that shouted the loudest in the room is defiant and set to dim Ramaphosa's quest for a second term. They chanted, shouted, and beat tables against Ramaphosa and his second-term bid.
They shouted load shedding and sang "Wenzeni uZuma" and "We want change" just as Ramaphosa entered the venue ahead of his address to get the conference officially under way.
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KZN delegates want President out as they sing songs against President Cyril Ramaphosa to step aside pic.twitter.com/Uww1C62cs5
The president has yet to deliver his political report, which was supposed to have taken place at 9.15am. More than six hours later, the conference was yet to officially start, with an ANC spokesperson saying the delays to the start of the conference did not translate to chaos, but rather to administrative issues that needed to be taken care of before everything started.
"The delay to the start of the conference does not translate to chaos. If delegates are moving up and down, that does not mean there is chaos. I think your definition of chaos is incorrect," Mabe told members of the media during a press briefing where he explained some of the issues affecting the late start of the programme for day one of the conference.
The Star