Johannesburg - Some sharp verbal fencing marked the cross-examination of Cope president Mosiuoa Lekota in the High Court in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
Jan Heunis, for ousted Congress of the People leader Mbhazima Shilowa, began questioning Lekota after lunch.
Lekota said a number of “boys” came to his house at 2am one night before Cope was established to ask him to lead them. Heunis queried the description of the men as boys and “sensed... an arrogance” in the statement.
Lekota explained that the men were younger than he was and he believed they were his “political juniors”.
“They are boys to me,” he said.
Lekota said the men were turned away because of security concerns as they did not have an appointment to see him.
Later, Heunis said Lekota was not responding to his questions, adding: “You are making political speeches.”
“What was the question?” Heunis asked.
Lekota said he was satisfied that he had answered “the one you asked me”.
Heunis responded: “I find it progressively more difficult to take you seriously.”
The court is trying to ascertain whether a Congress of the People conference held in May 2010 qualified as a quorum congress or an ordinary policy conference as part of the ongoing leadership battle, since Shilowa was ousted.
Earlier, Lekota said he had “lost his cool, I'm sorry to say”, and tried to charge at Shilowa at a party conference in December 2010.
“I tried to charge him and I was blocked by a lady. I'm sorry and ashamed that it happened, but I am a human being... .He was lucky that I was stopped,” Lekota said, to the amusement of his supporters in the court room.
Heunis revisited this testimony after lunch, asking whether Lekota apologised to Shilowa about the confrontation. Lekota said he had.
Heunis said: “What does your apology count for if you laugh about it?”
Lekota said it was not up to him whether his apology was accepted or not.
Heunis sought to cast doubt on Lekota's intentions to hold elective congresses in 2010, after Lekota earlier said Cope was not ready for the May congress in terms of the party's constitution.
After the May conference, the party was supposed to hold a congress in September. This did not materialise and it was postponed first to November and then to December.
Heunis said the pre-conditions had not been met by December when a second attempt was made to hold the congress.
Heunis said: “You were never going to hold the congress, were you?”
Lekota rejected this.
“If the pre-conditions were not met, we could not hold a congress, whether I liked it or not... But we continued to make efforts.”
In the interests of democracy the party tried to hold the December congress, Lekota said.
In February 2011, Lekota obtained an interim court order recognising him as president of the party and restraining Shilowa from claiming the title of party leader.
On February 8 of that year, Lekota expelled Shilowa from the party after an internal disciplinary hearing. Shilowa refused to participate. He was found guilty of mismanaging the party's parliamentary funds.
On July 18, 2012, the High Court in Pretoria struck an application by a faction of Cope aligned to Shilowa off the roll. The application was to stop further disciplinary hearings against Cope members pending the outcome of the Shilowa-Lekota leadership dispute.
Judge Ronel Tolmay ruled that the application by five Cope leaders in Gauteng and Limpopo was not urgent.
The application was brought by caucus leader Ndzipho Kalipa, whip Moses Mayekiso and Clara Sodlulashe-Motau, all of the Gauteng legislature; and Solly Mokhatshoa and Mabule Motubatse of the Limpopo legislature.
Lekota opposed the application, saying it was not urgent. Cope would become ungovernable if the party could not discipline its members, he said at the time.
The matter continues on Thursday. - Sapa