South African President Thabo Mbeki rounded on Friday on corrupt members of his ruling African National Congress (ANC) who he said were contesting municipal elections just to gain access to state resources.

The party's dominance on South Africa's post-apartheid politics is unquestioned, but it heads into local elections due by March struggling with internal divisions triggered by Mbeki's sacking of his graft-tainted but popular deputy Jacob Zuma.

In his weekly Internet letter to the party faithful Mbeki hit out at ANC members who he said planned to stand for council posts purely for material benefit.

"Some of the people who are competing to win nomination as our candidate local government councillors are obviously seeking support on the basis that once they are elected to positions of power, they will have access to material resources and the possibility to dispense patronage," he wrote.

"These goings-on tell the naked truth that the ranks of our movement are being corrupted by a self-seeking spirit that leads some among us to view membership of our organisation as a stepping stone to access state power, which they would then use corruptly to plunder the people's resources for their personal benefit." Infighting has been bitter in some local ANC branches in the run-up to the polls, fuelled by a wave of violent protests by residents over poor public services, which analysts say have been motivated in part by would-be candidates jostling for position.

In some areas disgruntled residents have threatened not to vote in the polls, which are widely expected to keep the vast majority of councils in ANC control.

Zuma's sacking in June has also opened up a gaping rift between Mbeki and the ANC's ruling alliance partners, the labour movement COSATU and the Communist Party, who have both staunchly backed the popular Zuma and called for his reinstatement.

Zuma, who remains deputy leader of the party, was sacked as national deputy president after his former financial adviser Schabir Shaik was convicted of corruption and fraud in a High Court judgement that said his relationship with Zuma was generally corrupt.

Some Zuma supporters burnt T-shirts emblazoned with Mbeki's portrait when Zuma appeared at a Durban court this week on charges of corruption. He is to stand trial in the High Court in July. He denies wrongdoing, but has not yet been asked to plead.