The National Freedom Party's (NFP) sole MP, Munzoor Shaik Emam, is butting heads with newly elected party president Irvin Barnes over its management, disputed positions, and the party's external communications function, among other things. 

The fresh tensions come a week before the party is supposed to send a delegation to a meeting with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) to convince it to lift the standing by-election ban it placed on the NFP because of perennial infighting.

Barnes was elected as president in December, but his election is being objected to by a faction that opposes the party's elective national and provincial conferences that took place late last year.

Shaik Emam, who doubles as the party's treasurer, said he believed the fact he was Indian made him feel disrespected in the party.

He added another issue was the party was full of power-hungry politicians, some of whom were illiterate.

Shaik Emam raised his gripes with News24 a week after sending a letter to Barnes and others, instructing them to refrain from calling themselves members of the party's national executive committee (NEC).

The party is barred by the IEC from contesting municipal elections because of never-ending infighting.

The NFP, whose councillors have come off worse in the growing political violence in KwaZulu-Natal, held two consecutive elective conferences as a step in convincing the IEC to allow it to contest by-elections and participate in other IEC programmes.

On 4 January, Shaik Emam wrote a letter to Barnes, who was elected in December, asking him to show evidence of his membership. 

The letter was also addressed to Mbali Shinga and Nhlanhla Twala, both of whom were elected to the new disputed NEC.

The NFP held two elective conferences, the provincial conference in late September and the national one in mid-December. 

In the letter to Barnes, Shaik Emam said, "Despite numerous requests calling upon you to refrain from conducting yourselves as members of the NEC, you continue to conduct yourselves in an irregular and unlawful manner bringing the party into disrepute."

Specifically addressing Barnes in the letter, Shaik Emam said: "… Can you kindly provide proof of your membership in good standing of the NFP for the last five years consecutively as per the requirements of the constitution."

The letter added: "Secondly, you have been advised that all processes and procedures that you have followed were unlawful and this conference was never sanctioned by the legitimate interim national executive committee."

Shaik Emam asked the trio to provide an undertaking within 48 hours that they would refrain from conducting themselves as NEC members; would not make any media statements; and to stop implementing any resolutions taken in the "unlawful conferences" both provincially and nationally.

He threatened to seek an urgent interdict against the three if they failed to heed the instructions.

In a rebuttal letter to Shaik Emam, Barnes hit back, saying he (Shaik Emam) did not seem to grasp the party's constitution. 

Barnes was elected with others to lead the party, but a faction emerged with complaints about how he was elected.

He told News24 he did not intend to take action against Shaik Emam yet.

"He's still a member [of Parliament] until further notice," Barnes said, when asked if Shaik Emam's seat was safe.

He added Shaik Emam had not yet apologised to him for his utterances.

Barnes said his focus was on getting the NFP back into the good books of the IEC, allowing them to contest by-elections.

Shaik Emam said his problems in the NFP was "the colour of my skin" and "everyone wants power even if they can't read or write".

Barnes added although he could not speak for Shaik Emam on the race issue, he was a coloured person and had not experienced any prejudice on account of his skin colour in the NFP.

Shaik Emam said he was unaware of the planned meeting with the IEC, suggesting one faction would be meeting if the meeting took place at all.

"I'm the contact person for the IEC. This was signed by the late NFP president [and founder Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi]. She did that," he added. 

"Secondly, we have an interim national executive committee [INEC] that was put in place in 2018." 

Shaik Emam also acts as chairperson of the INEC, which was essentially set up to manage the factions. 

"There is a matter in the Pietermaritzburg High Court to set aside the elective conferences. Ninety percent of the members didn't attend the conferences." 

He said Barnes had left the party and the disputed president did not have the requisite seven-year membership requirement. 

Shaik Emam added Barnes "doesn't want to hear from the people who are objecting to the national conference".

"How can you not want to hear the objections? He is now purporting to act as the president. The entire process leading to the conferences is unlawful." 

He said he told the factions conferences must be free and fair.

"The people that have the correct membership through a process that we all agreed on, were not allowed to participate in the conference."