Former Free State premier Ace Magashule has lost his latest court bid to have his suspension as ANC secretary-general lifted.
He had approached the Constitutional Court seeking to have his temporary ousting from Luthuli House reversed.
In a judgment handed down on Wednesday, the apex court said Magashule had no prospects of successfully appealing his suspension.
“The Constitutional Court has considered the application for condonation and the application for leave to appeal. It has concluded that, although there are no reasonable prospects of success on the merits of the application for leave to appeal, the delay in bringing the application for leave to appeal is minimal,” the court said.
Magashule first approached the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg to challenge his suspension, but the matter was dismissed with costs.
He subsequently approached the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), which dismissed the application in January 2022, prompting him to take up his case with the Constitutional Court.
Magashule was suspended from the ANC in May 2021 because of the party’s step-aside rule.
The rule requires ANC members facing criminal charges to step aside while their court cases are under way.
Magashule is facing corruption charges linked to the Free State asbestos corruption scandal. – Staff Reporter