THE National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) president Andrew Chirwa and secretary-general Irvin Jim were re-elected to their positions unopposed at the union’s 11th national congress on Wednesday evening.
In a statement issued on Wednesday night, NUMSA said more than one thousand delegates had travelled from different parts of the country to participate in the Worker’s Parliament.
Mbuso Ngubane, the KwaZulu-Natal regional secretary, has been elected as deputy general secretary, Mac Chavalala, the Hlanganani regional chairperson, as first deputy president, Puleng Phaka, the Northern Cape chairperson, as second deputy president, and Mphumzi Maqungo was elected national treasurer.
This, however, took place pending a judgment on Thursday morning on the union’s bid to appeal the Labour Court’s interdict against the gathering.
The Labour Court Judge, Graham Moshoana, on Wednesday evening reserved judgment in the union’s leave to appeal application, against Saturday’s ruling that declared the suspension of Numsa’s former second deputy president, Ruth Ntlokotse, and that of 30 other officials unlawful.
NUMSA was founded in 1987 as one of the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and remains the biggest metal workers trade union in South Africa.
The union was expelled from COSATU in 2014 and is now one of the biggest affiliate in the South African Federation of Trade Unions which was formed in 2017.
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