The special regional elective council (REC) meeting for the ANC structures in Vhembe to fill two vacant positions has come and gone, but whether members of the ruling party in the region will continue operating in camps remains to be seen.
During the one-day event held at the at the Nandoni Waterfront Lodge on Saturday, two important positions, namely those of deputy chairperson and deputy secretary of the Vhembe region, had to be filled. The two positions became vacant after the murder of the previous deputy secretary and Collins Chabane Mayor Moses Maluleke last year and the death of the deputy chairperson of the regional ANC, Adv Makonde Mathivha. The Vhembe region is Limpopo's second-biggest ANC constituency.
The current mayor of Makhado Municipality, Samuel Munyai, was elected as deputy chairperson, with Miyelani Chauke, a councillor of the Vhembe District Municipality, as deputy secretary. The two joined the chairperson, Tshitereke Matibe, secretary Rudzani Ludere and Cllr Mihloti Muhlophe (treasurer) in the executive committee of the regional office of the ANC.
After he was elected as deputy chairperson, Munyai pledged to work alongside the other elected leaders. "There is only one ANC in this region, and we will never allow it to be divided into two. We need to focus on the resolutions and declarations made at this council and not focus on individual aspirations," he said.