Internal disciplinary action against embattled ANC spokesman Carl Niehaus was possible but would have to come from the branch he belonged to, ANC spokeswoman Jesse Duarte said on Wednesday.

"It is possible but at the moment he resigned... we are giving him the opportunity to sort out his difficulties.

"It there is disciplinary action it will originate from the branches," Duarte said on the sidelines of a joint press briefing between the party and the Dutch Reformed Church.

ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe confirmed that it was up to Niehaus' branch whether he would be disciplined.

"The branch does that... it's their call," he said.

Niehaus resigned from his position in the party on Tuesday but said he remained a "loyal member" of ANC.

Earlier, Niehaus' attorney Ian Small Smith blamed the former spokesman's current woes on his "time spent in prison for his principled opposition to apartheid".

"Carl Niehaus has today [Wednesday] sought professional assistance in the two areas vital to dealing conclusively with his personal situation and reconstructing his life.

"He is seeking psychological counselling to assist him in dealing with the long-term and deeply negative affects of his time spent in prison for his principled opposition to apartheid," Smith said in a statement.

Niehaus served seven-and-a-half years of a 15-year jail term in the 1980s for high treason.

This is according to the "A - Z of South African Politics" published in 1994, which also states that "Niehaus is known for his uncompromising views, but is also respected for his honesty".

The statement said Niehaus was also getting help in settling the debt he currently owed.

Claims against Niehaus have been rolling in since a Mail & Guardian report on Friday on his alleged fraud and lies to maintain an expensive lifestyle that has dumped him in debt.

These include lies about him obtaining a doctorate, a fraudulent letter to obtain a loan and reports of millions of rands of debt, default payments and judgments against his name.

The ANC initially said he would be redeployed within the party but it said on Tuesday that Niehaus had withheld information from it and therefore opted to place him on a leave of absence.

His resignation followed this announcement.