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2 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
‘I must unconditionally retract': Floyd Shivambu apologizes for drug use accusations against Ndhlela
Former uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party secretary-general Floyd Shivambu has retracted his statement accusing the party's spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, of drug use after Ndhlela took legal action against him for defamation. 'You know, the other time I was not the national convener of the Mayibuye Process. Now, I got the benefit of benefiting from the leadership collective, in terms of how we should handle certain things,' Shivambu said during a press conference Friday. 'And part of the guidance, which I agreed with, is that I must unconditionally retract the statements about drug use and alcohol abuse of Nhlamulo Ndhlela - unconditionally.' Shivambu used the opportunity to encourage South Africans to avoid drugs and alcohol, especially those serving in Parliament or leadership roles across political parties. 'Drugs will never build you with anything; you will make a lot of mistakes. But we really unconditionally retract those statements made there, under the guidance of the collective of the leadership,' he added. Shivambu made the remarks while announcing members of the Mayibuye National Consultation Team and providing reflections on the progress of the Mayibuye Consultation Process, which he will lead. His retraction comes after Ndhlela confirmed he is suing Shivambu for defamation, and is demanding R3 million for defamation. In court papers shared on social media, Ndhlela said he filed charges at the Gauteng Local Division of the High Court. IOL News previously reported that Ndhlela has publicly denied the allegations and published drug and alcohol screening results from Lancet Laboratories on his official X account. The results indicated he tested negative for substances including alcohol, cannabis (THC), cocaine, amphetamines, opiates, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, methadone, methaqualone, and phencyclidine (PCP). When contacted by IOL News, Lancet Laboratories said they could neither confirm nor deny the authenticity of the published test results. IOL Politics
IOL News
4 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela releases lab results amid drug use claims from Floyd Shivambu
MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela denies drug allegations with medical proof. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers The uMkhonto weSizwe Party's national spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, has released medical test results which appear to confirm he is free from drugs and alcohol. This follows public allegations by former Secretary-General Floyd Shivambu that he was a user of the substances. Shivambu recently accused Ndhlela of being "a liar, takes drugs, and is always under the influence of alcohol." In response, Ndhlela has categorically denied the claims and refuted the claims by publishing drug and alcohol screening results on his official X account. The test results, issued by certified medical facility Lancet Laboratories, confirm he tested negative for the following substances: Alcohol, Cannabis (THC), Cocaine, Amphetamines (including methamphetamine), Opiates (including heroin, codeine, morphine), Benzodiazepines, Barbiturates, Methadone, Methaqualone and Phencyclidine (PCP). However, IOL reached out to Lancet Laboratories, who said that they could neither deny nor confirm the results. Meanwhile, Shivambu says thousands of people have applied to be volunteers in his National Consultation Team (NCT). "The people come from different political parties, the ANC, DA, EFF and a substantial number from MK Party. It is very senior leaders who occupy various position in government who have pledged solidarity," he told the SABC. Shivambu claimed that Jacob Zuma offered him the leadership position in the party, but he denied. "In the initial discussions when I joined there were discussions by President Zuma that I must be the President of the party which I rejected. I said that would be inappropriate because I had tremendous respect of his leadership." However, speaking to the national broadcaster, Ndhlela accused Shivambu of being arrogant. He dismissed Shivambu's claims of R7 million being siphoned from the party monthly. "Umkhonto WeSizwe is a strong party. It is the fastest growing political party in this country. We are bound to have alien tendencies that are not cultural to the party. This is the case with what we are finding ourselves in from now. He has never raised the issue of the R7 million within the party," Ndhlela claimed. Ndhlela has also formally demanded a public apology and retraction from Shivambu within 48 hours, threatening legal action if the demand is not met. "Our client, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, has been subjected to a vicious campaign of lies and character assassination," his lawyers said in a statement. The legal team outlined specific demands, including a public retraction on Shivambu's X account, pinned for seven days, and an unconditional apology. "Social media cannot be a lawless space where individuals are slandered without consequence. We are preparing to issue summons to identified perpetrators and will seek substantial damages." The lawyers also called on Shivambu to contact eNCA to broadcast a correction, with failure to comply risking further legal action. IOL Politics Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.
