NFP president Ivan Barnes' name has been sent to the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Speaker as the replacement of Mbali Shinga who was expelled by her party after a lenghty disciplinary process and unsuccessful appeal.
The National Freedom Party (NFP), which holds the balance of power with only one seat in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature, is facing deep internal divisions after former provincial chairperson Mbali Shinga filed an urgent court bid to halt her expulsion from the party.
Following the dismissal of her appeal, the NFP wrote to KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Speaker Nontembeko Boyce informing her of Shinga's expulsion. The move would effectively strip her of her positions as a Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) and MEC for Social Development.
On Wednesday, Shinga filed court papers seeking an interdict to prevent the party from recalling her from the legislature, where she serves as the NFP's sole representative.
Despite the appeal tribunal's rejection of Shinga's challenge and a formal notification to the Speaker by NFP secretary-general Bheki Xaba, the party's Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) in KwaZulu-Natal has openly defied the national leadership's directive to remove her.
