The National Disciplinary Committee of the ANC found Niehaus guilty of six counts of misconduct for defaming the organization. This had to do with his defense of the former president Jacob Zuma after the Constitutional Court had ordered that he be jailed for contempt of court. Niehaus was charged for his comments to the media and organized a gathering outside former president Jacob Zuma’s house in July 2021.Niehaus is accused of purposefully disseminating false material to the public in order to create confusion and discord within the ANC. This is according to the chair of the ANC disciplinary committee, Ralph Mgijima, in a letter to the committee. The ANC suffered because of it.
“The NDC is of the view that the charges for which the charged member has been found guilty are severe. As such, the charged member’s plea that he be sanctioned with a reprimand if found guilty is wholly inappropriate.The utterances of the charged member were made at a time when the circumstances surrounding the arrest and subsequent committal to prison of former president Zuma were very volatile as evidenced by the subsequent riots which took place in KwaZulu-Natal and parts of Gauteng and the resultant loss of life and limb and damage to and loss of property,” Mgijima wrote.
He claimed that Niehaus displayed no remorse and persisted in his belief that the ANC’s punishment of him violated both his rights and the organization’s constitution.Niehaus has a lengthy history within the ANC and has done time in prison for his political ideas, but Mgijima continued by saying that he, like all other ANC members, is obligated to abide by the party’s code of conduct.A five-year penalty was not accepted after Mathews Phosa, who represented Niehaus during the hearings, made the recommendation.
“The failure of the charged member to show any remorse for his misconduct convinced the NDC that he was not capable of being rehabilitated.The charged member is expelled from the ANC,” Mgijima found.“While the ANC was very tolerant of differing views, it was the obligation of every member to abide by the stated policies and positions of the party as articulated by the NEC from time to time. No member was exempted or allowed to adopt a posture that defined him or her as being bigger than the organisation. However, the NDC is of the view that the interests and integrity of the organisation warrant protection and that the interests of the individual member are subservient to the interests of the organisation. The charged member is expelled from the ANC,” the finding stated.
The ANC affirmed Niehaus’ suspension in July of last year. When Niehaus’s remarks at Nkandla over the weekend brought the party into disrepute, the party decided to suspend his membership, according to a letter from the then-ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte. Niehaus has since posted information about his appeal on social media.“I have already appealed the travesty of justice for my illegal expulsion by the ANC’s national disciplinary committee. Because I have appealed the farcical expulsion, I’m suspended. I remain a full member of @MYANC,” he tweeted.
I have already appealed the travesty of justice of my illegal expulsion by the ANC National Disciplinary Committee (NDC). Because I have appealed the farcical expulsion is suspended. I remain a full member of @MYANC.
A LUTA CONTINUA! ✊🏾 pic.twitter.com/vlPvXQ0HCU
— Carl Niehaus (@niehaus_carl) December 12, 2022
Carl Political rankings
Niehaus joined the African National Congress in July 1980. Before he and Johanna (Jansie) Lourens were detained in August 1983, he was an active member of the ANC underground in South Africa. At the University of the Witwatersrand, Niehaus earned a degree in Industrial Sociology during the same time frame. After being found guilty of High Treason, Carl was given a 15-year prison term, while Jansie received a four-year sentence.Niehaus completed his sentence after serving seven and a half years, and Jansie completed hers. In prison, Carl and Jansie were married. He earned two theological degrees from the University of South Africa, completing both Summa cum Laude.
Niehaus was released from jail in March 1991 as a result of discussions between the ANC and the former Nationalist Party Government for the release of political prisoners. By 1991, the process of ending apartheid had started. Immediately after his release, Niehaus was named the ANC’s media liaison spokesperson. He also served as the organization’s head of media relations from 1992 until the General Election on April 27, 1994.
Niehaus was elected to the National Executive Committee of the ANC at the ANC’s National Conference in Bloemfontein (December 1994) after serving for two consecutive terms on the Regional Executive Council (REC) of the ANC in Gauteng (the former PWV Region). He also served as the commissioner for religious affairs for the NEC.Niehaus served as a lawmaker in the National Assembly in 1996. He was a member of the Select Committee for Justice and Communication and chaired the Select Committee on Correctional Services. He also served as the chairman of the Correctional Service Transformation Forum.
Later in life, Niehaus was the subject of debate. His alleged degree in Industrial Sociology at the University of the Witwatersrand, and a PhD in Theology at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands raised much controversy. In 2009, it was discovered that Niehaus had fabricated more details about his credentials and employment with the ANC, and that he did not hold a degree from the University of Utrecht. During his time serving as South Africa’s ambassador in The Hague from 1997 to 2000, Niehaus claimed to have earned a doctorate in theology from Utrecht.
Following an enquiry, a university official told the Beeld newspaper, “I can inform you that Mr Carl Niehaus had not obtained a doctorate in Theology in the period you mentioned.”Furthermore, Niehaus was accused of committing fraud, most of which he acknowledged. He allegedly persuaded the proprietor of a travel agency to cover the costs of a family vacation to Mauritius temporarily, and when he was required to reimburse the money, he refused to do so. In February 2009, he was compelled to quit the ANC.
ANC 55th national conference
His dismissal occurs just four days before Nasrec 2, the party’s 55th national conference, which will be held from December 16–20, 2022.As an open critic of ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is vying for a second term as leader of the ruling party, Niehaus has caused some consternation within the ANC on numerous occasions. In the forthcoming leadership election, Dr. Zweli Mkhize, a former health minister, will compete against Ramaphosa.
The party’s president and the 80-member National Executive Committee (NEC), sometimes known as the “Top Six,” will be chosen at the conference. Between National Conferences, the NEC is the ANC’s highest body and is in charge of running the organization. It’s crucial that the top six are chosen in this election. This is because the party’s chosen president automatically becomes the party’s nominee for president in the general elections. However, things don’t just begin at the conference. Prior to the main conference, there are numerous other conferences, meetings, and discussions.
Niehaus, a fervent fan of Zuma, has made no secret of his distaste for the current president and frequently uses social media to voice his displeasure with Ramaphosa. Niehaus is photographed holding a sign that reads “Ramaphosa must go” while dressed in ANC regalia.The Zuma supporter was vindicated in June when he was detained in the KwaZulu-Natal town of Estcourt while being interviewed live on television. In order to support Zuma, who was imprisoned for disobeying a Constitutional Court ruling that required him to testify before the state capture committee, which the former statesman established just before he left office, he was accused of organizing an illegal gathering outside Estcourt prison.
A committee led by former ANC and national president Kgalema Motlanthe developed the guidelines for electing the National Executive Committee (NEC) and Top Six. The ANC’s internal election processes underwent some significant adjustments as a result of the regulations, which were announced in August 2022. One of the modified regulations is that ANC members are not permitted to run for high-level leadership posts if they have been accused or convicted of “unethical or immoral conduct, any severe crime, or corruption.” All campaigns must also disclose a complete financial history for the party’s internal Electoral Committee to review.
There have been a number of modifications made to the Top Six election process, which will now take place in two phases. The president, secretary-general, national chairperson, treasurer-general, deputy president, and deputy secretary-general make up the party’s Top Six. The first ballot will elect the top four candidates. Following the announcement of the first ballot’s results, the last two will be chosen in the second round. This is done to make the slate campaigning method, in which unsuccessful candidates run again, more difficult. As usual, a gender quota will apply to the NEC elections, requiring 40 of its 80 members to be women.
A new national executive committee will be chosen by the party during the vital meeting in December at the Nasrec Expo Center (NEC). In Nasrec, a city south of Johannesburg, more than 4,500 delegates are anticipated. They consist of voting delegates from branches all around the nation. Cosatu and the South African Communist Party are also listed on the roll call, but they are not non-voting delegates. The party is anticipated to have open debates on its future while also discussing its organizational and political reports. The party is nearing the end of its planning, according to ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile. The Phala Phala scandal is still a problem for the current president, Cyril Ramaphosa, but he is adamant about seeking a second term as party leader. Ramaphosa’s rivals include Zweli Mkhize, who is involved in the Digital Vibes scam.
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