CENTURION - The African National Congress (ANC) has suspended all regional conferences in Gauteng citing concerns around the convening of branch general meetings (BGMs).

The party's national executive committee is currently meeting in Centurion on Monday afternoon.

#ANCNEC Ace Magashule says they called a special NEC to “appraise ourselves in terms of conferences”

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) June 18, 2018

As the ANC’s highest decision-making body met on Monday afternoon at the Saint George’s Hotel, ANC members from the West Rand Region gathered outside, raising concerns of irregularities at BGMs ahead of the regional conference.

As a result, the ANC’s Secretary General Ace Magashule made this announcement: “We have decided to postpone all regional conferences of Gauteng which were supposed to take place this coming weekend because we wanted to make sure that, as the court ruled, we must strive to resolve our matters internally and politically.”

However, the party’s leadership has given the ANC in the province the green light to hold its elective conference scheduled for next month.

#ANCNEC meeting under way in Centurion. CM pic.twitter.com/jli0MuwPBv

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) June 18, 2018

ANC TO DEAL WITH STRING OF COURT CHALLENGES

The ANC says it will deal harshly with members who take the organisation to court without exhausting internal processes.

At the same time, the High Court in Johannesburg heard a case by disgruntled members from the Eastern Cape who want the provincial leadership to be disbanded.

Judgement has been reserved in that matter.

The party's members want the court to enforce the recommendations of the Sbu Ndebele report which advised that the newly elected leadership be dissolved and interim leadership be appointed.

If the court finds in favour of the disgruntled members from the Eastern Cape that province will be the second after KwaZulu-Natal to be run by a task team.

The Free State may follow suit as some party members there have threatened to also approach the court to challenge the elected provincial leadership.

The KZN elective conference was also interdicted on the eve of the gathering.

Magashule says this behaviour of taking the party to court needs to end.

“It stops here, the ANC will deal with this matter [and] there will be a decision which says ‘it stops here.’”

The court cases don’t bode well for the ANC as it prepares for national elections.

But Magashule says the party has confidence in its dispute resolution committee meant to deal with grievances internally.

#ANCNEC Magashule says so far they have discussed Limpopo “everything is going okay”...says is ready for conference this weekend.

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) June 18, 2018

Former Pres Jacob Zuma is also here. #ANCNEC pic.twitter.com/07TKeqUWGf

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) June 18, 2018

(Edited by Thapelo Lekabe)