Mangaung executive mayor Gertrude Mothupi and council speaker Mahlomola Ralebese on Wednesday announced their resignation from the ANC to join the yet to be named movement set up by former Defence Minister Terror Lekota.

Five other Mangaung councillors also announced their departure from the ANC in Bloemfontein.

Speaking for the group, Themba Zweni, said the group chose to "protect their communities over individuals" and would thus resign.

"The truth shall prevail. The struggle continues."

On Tuesday, the ANC in the Free State announced that Mothupi and Ralebese had been expelled from the party after their national appeals were unsuccessful.

Mothupi, sister of one of the breakaway party's leaders, Charlotte Lobe, denied that she received a letter on her expulsion from the ANC.

She said her appeal before the party's national disciplinary committee of appeal (NDCA) had been postponed to a future date.

"The (ANC) constitution is very clear on how to expel members. You do not expel someone whose matter is handled by the NDCA and the NDCA has not decided yet."

Mothupi said the ANC had always wanted to get rid of her and Ralebese.

"They would even go as far as to not adhere to the party's
constitutional stipulations. We welcomed the invitation for us to vacate the seats in the municipality and also to leave the ANC."

Mothupi confirmed that she was apparently suspended from the party initially because she did not follow party orders.

"I was being expelled on 'probability of facts'. I do not know what that means," she said on the content of an ANC letter sent to her.

Ralebese said he was suspended from the ANC for following the country's laws.

"The ANC cannot charge me for following the rules and orders of the municipality, for following the law of the land."

Ralebese said the ANC in many instances urged its council members to act against the rule and orders of the municipality.

This related to recent incidents during which the municipality was considering disciplinary steps against municipal manager Thabo Manyoni, who was also the deputy-chairman of the Free State ANC.

"The ANC was instructing its councillors not to attend meetings of the council, again a total and complete disrespect by the ANC leadership in Free State of the Constitution and the laws of the land."

The group related various incidents of the ANC's alleged heavy handed tactics in the Mangaung local municipal council, which is the Free State's biggest local municipality.

Most had to do with ANC cadre's who were deployed to the
municipality, apparently doing nothing but party business, and who were "shop stewarded" by the ANC so that no disciplinary actions could be taken.

Zweni said the officials who they tried to act against ended up disciplining them and expelling them from the organisation.

"We did not know that when we tried to investigate allegations of corruption, we would be placed on special leave by the very party which urged us to fight corruption," he said.

Ralebese said the Free State ANC briefing on Tuesday, announcing his and Mothupi's expulsion, was an attempt to pre-empt the exodus of ANC councillors.

"They probably may have become aware that we were going to confirm our departure from the ANC," he said.