ANCYL in North West calls for recusal of Premier Maape from delivering SOPA citing his prolonged ill health

JOHANNESBURG - The African National (ANC) Youth League in the North West has written to its mother body requesting that it recuse Premier Bushy Maape from the responsibility of delivering the State of the Province Address on Tuesday. 

The league raised Maape’s continued ill health as the reason he should not speak before the provincial legislature.

In a letter by the league’s officials – which Eyewitness News has seen – the league calls on the ANC to reflect on the request objectively.

The league on the platinum belt has been calling for Maape’s retirement for some time. 

The premier spent nearly six months on leave, only to return for a short while in January before travelling to Thailand for further medical treatment. 

The governing party’s youth wing in the province says the ANC must Maape not to deliver the SOPA of a province he’s barely led over the past year. 

The league says while it’s not trying to be insensitive, it’s not comfortable with the idea of Maape delivering the SOPA.

Youth league secretary Tshiamo Tshotetsi said the premier should be allowed to focus on his health.

“The state of health of the premier is quite concerning, there are a number of things he’s not able to do and we have said to the ANC that it should consider recusing him from that.” 

Tshotetsi says the league is deliberating on this matter with the ANC – insisting that when the dust settles Nono Maloyi, who’s the acting premier and ANC chair in the province, should deliver the SOPA.