Illustrative image | Luthuli House, the headquarters of the African National Congress, in the Johannesburg CBD. (Photo: Lubabalo Lesolle) | Gwen Ramokgopa Treasurer-General of the ANC. (Photo: Gallo Images / Luba Lesolle) 
The ANC and Ezulweni Investments have reached yet another out-of-court settlement over the party’s R85-million plus interest debt for printing posters, banners and other campaign material featuring President Cyril Ramaphosa that helped clinch a win for the party in the 2019 elections.
The protracted legal battle had brought the party’s operations to a standstill, leaving it unable to pay salaries to hundreds of employees, to pay creditors, or fund ongoing programmes and support by-elections, Ferial Haffajee reported here.
The party, represented by Treasurer-General Gwen Ramokgopa, was on Tuesday, 21 October 2025, due to approach the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg to urgently overturn a court order attaching its bank accounts, which she said created an “existential” crisis for the ANC, but the matter has since been withdrawn.
“The applicant (ANC) hereby withdraws its application against the respondent as the matter has become settled, with each party to pay its own costs,” reads the court’s notice commissioned by the ANC’s lawyers, Mayet Attorneys.
If the case had gone ahead, the ANC could have faced insolvency, risking more than R1-billion in public funds and donations.
The settlement, the details of which have not been made public, provides temporary relief for the ANC, but there is no guarantee that the dispute is fully resolved. Previous agreements between the party and Ezulweni Investments have subsequently broken down.
‘Issue closed’
In a statement, the party said the matter had been resolved “amicably”, without giving any further details.
“Both parties agreed to enter into a new settlement agreement supplanting all others, including the court judgment of 2023 between the ANC and Ezulweni. Its contents will remain confidential… We consider this issue closed and will not entertain any questions on the subject matter,” said national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu.
The withdrawal of the matter comes after the Sheriff of the Court attached the party’s three bank accounts, but the amount in them was reportedly unlikely to exceed R85-million, the amount due to Ezulweni after a protracted battle for payment.
The sheriff also attached goods worth R140,000 at the party’s Luthuli House headquarters early in October, leaving party officials with no equipment and little furniture.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/IMG_7786.jpg "The ANC's headquarters, Luthuli House, in Johannesburg. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla)")
In a statement on 4 October, the ANC said it had informed Ezulweni about changes it wanted to the court order after its forensic investigations found that a former ANC employee had been bribed to lie about Ezulweni delivering materials, and that Ezulweni charged VAT even though it wasn’t registered.
The company, in its defence, said that its application for registration had been lodged with the revenue authority.
“The ANC is in the process of setting aside the writ of execution and intends to pursue a counterclaim for all payments made to date. The ANC believes that Ezulweni has been unjustly enriched and plans to initiate private prosecution proceedings against its directors,” said the ANC at the time.
It remains unclear whether the party still intends to go this route after the settlement.
Protracted dispute
The battle dates back to 2018/19 when the small Newcastle-based company’s owners incurred debt to quickly produce the party’s banners before the 2019 election, leading to the company owing both local and Chinese suppliers.
Ezulweni attached the ANC’s bank account in December 2020 and lifted the order pending settlement talks. When the talks failed, the ANC attempted to appeal against the September 2020 judgment, which found that the party owed the company R102-million, plus interest and costs.
In December 2023, another writ of execution was also served on the party to attach and take movable goods such as furniture, laptops and printers. These would then be sold by public auction to recoup the funds plus interest and costs.
This was after Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) Judge Trevor Gorven said the party’s version that it had no contract with Ezulweni Investments was “utterly untenable” and found it liable for the debt. Read the judgment here.
The ANC then applied to the SCA for leave to appeal against that ruling, but the appeal lapsed.
Since then, it has been one stumbling block after another.
In January 2024, the ANC reached another settlement with Ezulweni’s owners, which it seemingly later broke. Days later, it announced the establishment of a crowdfunding initiative where its members and the public could make monetary contributions aimed at stabilising the party’s finances.
Read more: ANC turns to crowdfunding to stabilise its finances
Ezulweni has been able to secure four attachment orders against the ANC to date.
Meanwhile, nine judges in three different courts have ruled that Ezulweni Investments had a binding contract with the ANC, which the party has consistently denied, and that the party owes millions of rand for the supply of election banners for the May 2019 general elections. DM