ANC chair in the Western Cape, Marius Fransman, has abandoned his court bid to get his job back after he was informed that disciplinary processes will be instituted against him, his lawyer Ashley Meyer confirmed yesterday (Thursday). ‘We’ve now served a formal notice of withdrawal of our court application,’ Meyer is quoted as saying in a report on the IoL site. Fransman turned to the Western Cape High Court on Wednesday, and was granted an order compelling his party to provide him with the report of an internal integrity commission which investigated sexual harassment allegations against him. Fransman, who has been accused of sexually harassing 21-year-old Louisa Wynand while they were travelling to Rustenburg in January, was suspended pending a disciplinary inquiry. He was due to return to court today (Friday) to launch an application to get his job back, but Meyer said the fact that Fransman now has the report and that an affidavit by ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe revealed that disciplinary processes would follow, caused him to withdraw his application. ‘He’s also now learnt for the first time officially that the ANC will initiate a disciplinary procedures against him. He now has clarity,’ said Meyer.

Full report on the IoL site  

Evidence presented by the 21-year-old complainant was ‘more likely to be true, than not’, according to the unanimous opinion of the ANC’s integrity commission. A Mail & Guardian report notes the commission is tasked with protecting the image and reputation of the ANC and it stated in its findings that ‘in light of the above, it unanimously finds that the actions and behaviour of comrade Marius Fransman in this matter have brought the ANC into disrepute and have tarnished its image’. The commission recommended that disciplinary charges be imposed on Fransman by the ANC’s national disciplinary committee. Fransman says he is studying the report and will respond to it after next week’s local government elections. He reportedly told the Cape Times: ‘I can say that it confirms my impression that the report, that the process of the integrity commission was abused in a factional way to take me down politically.’

Full Mail & Guardian report

Full Cape Times report (subscription needed)  

Fransman, meanwhile, is involved in another High Court matter. A report in Die Burger notes an application to set aside the decision of the Western Cape’s Scopa committee will be heard on Thursday. DA provincial Chief Whip Mark Wiley says they are looking forward to the conclusion of this matter so that ‘proceedings against Fransman and Pierre Uys may continue’. Fransman and Uys were ordered in 2014 to appear before Scopa to explain findings by the Auditor-General about the use of consultants in their terms as provincial Ministers, but they refused. The departments they headed (Health and Transport) spent R9.2bn on consultants between 2008 and 2011. ANC spokesperson Cobus Grobler says the DA’s enthusiasm is because of the coming elections. The former provincial Ministers contend that the awarding of contracts is carried out by heads of departments – thereby making it unnecessary to explain their actions to Scopa.

Full report in Die Burger