uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) president Kebby Maphatsoe has slammed rival groupings within the organisation, saying they are politically driven to destroy the association.
In the latest to-and-fro between the warring MKMVA and a group calling themselves the MK National Council, Maphatsoe said in a media briefing on Monday that any divisions within the MK veteran's ranks are "counterproductive".
This comes after the council met for their conference over the weekend and reportedly criticised Maphatsoe and President Jacob Zuma.
"It has always been our position that all MK military veterans have to stand united in their commitment to the political ideals that we have fought for, as well as the critical work that needs to be done to ensure all veterans are cared for," Maphatsoe said.
"Any strife and divisions within our ranks are counterproductive and mitigate against the interest of MK military veterans. MKMVA must be firmly rooted within the organisational structures of our mother body, the ANC."
He said any good soldier has discipline and respect for their organisational structure.
"That is why when some individual MK members started to challenge the authority of our MKMVA organisational structures and the leadership of these structures that have been democratically elected, we felt that engagement rather than antagonistic rejection of them as fellow comrades was the correct approach," Maphatsoe said.
"Even when these individuals went one step further and organised themselves into a structure that evolved over time to become the so-called MK National Council, it was our approach not to out of hand denounce this structure... We followed the route of engagement."
He said the council was not a formally recognised structure of the ANC.
"Over a period of time, we reluctantly came to the conclusion that the intention of the MK National Council grouping was not to first and foremost raise concerns about the wellbeing and services being provided to MK military veterans," he said.
"They were politically driven to either destroy MKMVA or take it over and put it into the service of alien political ideals and associates that do not want to see the implementation of radical economic transformation."