The Citizen reports that while staffers in other provinces have been paid so far, African National Congress (ANC) employees in the Free State face another bleak Christmas.

And they are expected to prepare for the party’s January 8 celebrations scheduled to be held in Bloemfontein next month without a pay cheque in sight. According to employees at Kaizer Sebothelo provincial office, who receive payments directly from Luthuli House, they were always ill because of stress. ANC staffers across the country have, for more than a year, fought for their salaries and benefits through pickets and court action. The financially struggling governing party, which plans to host over 6,000 delegates for the December elective conference, has unpaid debts running into millions of Rands. The workers’ representative at head office, Mvusi Mdlala, said the Free State workers’ issue came out during a meeting of managers last week. “They paid owed salaries to eight provinces so far, but haven’t paid UIF or the provident fund. Treasurer-general [Paul Mashatile] had an arrangement with provinces that they should, in the meantime, pay workers. We were against this as they abdicated their responsibilities. What the ANC subjects its workers to is very sad. This issue of owed salaries has affected employees. It’s a crisis that won’t die,” Mdala said. Free State ANC spokesperson Oupa Khoabane said the province had fulfilled Mashatile’s request and did not owe anyone so far. “Those who are owed monies are actually owed by head office, not us. The rest, who are paid by the province, are not owed any salaries at all. “So, it is Luthuli House that has an outstanding debt to the workers,” he claimed.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Getrude Makhafola at The Citizen (subscriber access only)

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