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Mary Phadi has allegedly written to MK Party president, Jacob Zuma, revealing how a senior leader has been orchestrating a campaign behind the scenes since she rejected his sexual advances.

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Sizwe sama Yende

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Under fire Umkhonto we Sizwe Party (MK) leader in Mpumalanga, Mary Phadi, has allegedly hit back at detractors by making sensational sexual harassment claims against a national leader.

The party expelled Phadi last year, but she has been holding tightly to the party’s finances with the backing of a Mpumalanga High Court judgement that ordered her reinstatement.

This has prompted five legislature members to depose affidavits to the legislature distancing themselves from any use of the party’s funds and irregularities that may arise.

The People’s Eye has seen a signed correspondence that Phadi allegedly submitted to President Jacob Zuma complaining about the sexual overturtes of a senior leader who cannot be named at this point. The concerned leader did not respond to written questions sent via WhatsApp.

Phadi also did not respond to confirm the authenticity of the correspondence, which has gone viral.

The letter dated January 16, says: “I write this letter to you to express my concern about the events that have been unfolding in our beloved party Umkhonto weSizwe, especially the events that relate to myself being victimised through the various propaganda and false accusations placed upon my name.”

BEING VILIFIED AND VICTIMISED

According to the correspondence, the leader “manufactured” the persistent vilification and continued propaganda because she turned down his sexual advances.

“I would like to put it on record that these accusations have been escalating since the (title and name withheld) made sexual advances towards me that I did not appreciate. As a leader in uMkhonto we Sizwe I take the matters of ethics and morality very seriously and with the mandate to serve and deliver to our people,” reads the letter.

“As a woman, I am being vilified and victimised since I refuse to give into his attempts of spending the night with him as favours on August 4 in 2024 he sent a text with effect of 22:54 on that day after we had a leadership meeting in Nelspruit. My refusal and unresponsiveness was the diplomatic drive to manage the situation.”

Phadi has been the party’s legislature leader and provincial convenor since the MK surprised all and sundry by garnering enough votes to overtake the DA and EFF to be the second largest party in the province. The MK has nine members representing it in the Mpumalanga legislature.

PHADI’S EXPULSION

Phadi was however expelled in November 2024 in the wake of allegations of financial mismanagement and hiring a hitman to assassinate the party’s legislature member.

The Mpumalanga High Court ordered that she must be reinstated on December 3 last year.

The party had already appointed former public protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, as Phadi’s replacement, on October 25 2024 but she could not take her position in the legislature because Phadi has been digging in her heels.

The five legislature members who wrote the affidavits are Benson Nxumayo, Qhawekazi Bhungane-Mtshweni, George Lukhele, Jabulani Mdluli and Mias Fenyane.

They gave their affidavits to legislature secretary, Hubert Shabangu, to cushion themselves against any criminal or civil charges when the party’s finances are audited in future.

One of the five legislature members, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the party did not have a financial policy and, as such, should not have been allocated any legislature funding until it had it drafted.

AG WILL CATCH US

“The auditor-general will catch the party for financial mismanagement. This will be a big blow for the MK before the 2026 local government elections,” he said.

The member said that the MK was in a “mess” due to infighting.

“We’re the second biggest party in the province. However, we cannot point where our constituency offices are for which the legislature has allocated funds. Phadi was fired and we’re asking ourselves where she accounts and who she represents in the Mpumalanga legislature. The party is losing the opposition leader’s salary to her,” the member said.

MKHWEBANE’S RAW DEAL

The member said that the party’s constitution precluded members from suing the party and, doing so, amounted to automatic dismissal.

He said that the party still owed service providers for a rally that took place at Emalahleni on May 26 2024 where Zuma campaigned for the last time before the general elections and also for the first anniversary celebration in Mkhondo (Piet Retief) on December 1 last year.

The member said they had pacified the service providers by paying small amounts from their own pockets. He summed up the situation in the party as “unhealthy.”

“Comrade Mkhwebane was given a raw deal considering the tension in the party. We expected her to deal with problems differently, but her approach is also wrong. Everybody here is fighting,” he said.

“Everybody is fighting for positions and people here love money too much. Mkhwebane was thrown a curve ball, really.”

To the allegation of refusing to hand over management of MK’s finances, Phadi tersely responded: “No comment.”

Provincial MK co-ordinator, Mike Ngobeni, said that the party would be able to respond on Tuesday. Mkhwebane did not respond to written questions.

GEOGRAPHIC REPRESENTATION

The MK is also grappling with issues of geographical representation in the legislature. All the nine legislature members are from the Nkangala region and there is none from Gert Sibande and Ehlanzeni.

The Gert Sibande region, which borders KwaZulu-Natal, boosted the party’s votes significantly.

Mkhwebane has recently announced that the party had put structures in place in Mpumalanga and was the first province to have a full-time detachment.

It is not clear if the party has lodged an appeal against Phadi’s reinstatement.

In December, national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndlela indicated that the party would appeal because it was never served with legal documents, did not file an opposing affidavit, and therefore made no representations.