ANC Eastern Cape Secretary Threatens Mbalula With Defamation Lawsuit Over Candidate List Blame
The ANC’s Eastern Cape Provincial Secretary, Lulama Ngcukayitobi, has threatened Secretary General Fikile Mbalula with a defamation lawsuit over allegations that he blamed the province’s leadership for failures involving the submission of candidate lists.
In a letter dated today, September 17, 2026, Mabuza Attorneys accused Mbalula of circulating false and damaging claims that Ngcukayitobi was responsible for the ANC’s failure to submit candidate lists to the IEC on time.
The legal team rejected allegations that Ngcukayitobi missed deadlines or altered lists approved by the ANC’s National Executive Committee.
The letter also claims that Mbalula was responsible for instructing changes to candidate lists, including the removal of Andile Lungisa from the Nelson Mandela Bay proportional representation list.
Ngcukayitobi’s lawyers further accuse the ANC’s administrative leadership of undermining the Eastern Cape’s elected structures through controversial interventions, which they say contributed to the candidate-list crisis.
Mbalula has been given until Tuesday, September 22, 2026, to issue a full and unconditional retraction.
Failure to do so, the lawyers warned, will result in an application to the High Court for a declaration of defamation.
The letter also warns Mbalula against making public statements about the dispute, saying any further remarks could be treated as aggravating the alleged defamation.
