• ANC Ekurhuleni chairperson Mzwandile Masina has staged a "symbolic picket" outside the St George's Hotel.
• This is where the ANC's NEC usually meets. 
• Masina has called on the party's top leadership for the consistent application of the 54th national elective conference resolutions for those implicated in corruption to step aside and appear before the ANC's integrity commission.

ANC Ekurhuleni chairperson Mzwandile Masina has called for the party's national executive committee (NEC) to be consistent when applying resolutions adopted at the 2017 Nasrec elective conference.

Masina, in what some have described as his own Ronald Lamola moment, demonstrated outside the St George's Hotel in Pretoria on Saturday morning as the NEC convened.

Lamola and a few other members of the party had picketed outside the hotel calling for former ANC and South African president Jacob Zuma to step down.

The venue is where the NEC usually hosts meetings, however due to the Covid-19 pandemic and regulations prohibiting gatherings of more than 50 people, it is being held via virtual platforms.

"The 54^th national conference was very clear on what should happen if you have been accused with regards to corruption," said Masina.

He added those accused were expected to approach the party's integrity commission and those facing charges should step aside until their matters have been cleared.

Masina said the party's leaders needed to take decisive, taking steps against those implicated without targeting anyone.

His actions follow a fierce back and forth between different factions, with those in support of the ANC's secretary-general, Ace Magashule, launching a "hands-off" campaign and many others across both the party and society calling for President Cyril Ramaphosa to be more decisive when dealing with those implicated in corruption.

Ramaphosa, who wrote a letter to party members last week, said the ANC was accused Number 1 when it came to corruption and this had resulted in his predecessor penning a letter to the incumbent questioning his commitment to the fight graft.

Masina told News24, while he did not necessarily disagree with Ramaphosa's assertion, he wanted to clarify that as a member he would not wear the label "Number 1 accused", the Ekurhuleni chairperson, who is also the city's mayor, said there were millions of party members and supporters who should not be labelled in that manner.

"If you go and steal, you must stand trial and leave the ANC out of it. When the ANC deploys you, it doesn't say go and steal."

He said he did not want people to see "accused Number 1" when they saw him, insisting his membership was not based on that.

Masina added those who were implicated needed to step aside to avoid dragging the party's name down with them.

This week, the ANC attempted to clear its position on former Ethekwini mayor Zandile Gumede, who in spite of facing corruption charges, was appointed to the provincial legislature.

The party in KwaZulu-Natal has since said it would ask her to consider stepping aside until her name had been cleared.

Masina said he hoped the ANC's NEC would give reasons behind calls attributed to the chairperson of the subcommittee on peace and justice, Tony Yengeni, calling for Ramaphosa's head.

"I wasn't there, I am not in the NEC but if what he said is based on the criteria then he must step aside," added Masina, referring to the resolutions taken by the ANC.

"No member is above the ANC, it doesn't matter which position you are in."

The ANC's NEC meeting started on Friday and is expected to wrap up on Sunday.