KZN MEC Mbali Shinga to Appeal Expulsion from NFP After Disciplinary Ruling

• Mbali Shinga has filed an appeal after the NFP expelled her for misconduct and defying party instructions
• Her legal team says they will go to court if the appeal is unsuccessful
• Shinga argues that the party’s national leadership does not have the authority to remove her from her position

KWAZULU NATAL — NFP member and KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC, Shinga, has decided to appeal her expulsion from the party. Her legal team confirmed this on Monday, 20 April 2026.

Shinga was fired on Sunday, 19 April 2026, after the party found her guilty of misconduct and gross insubordination.

This comes after she refused to follow the party’s instruction to support a motion of no confidence against Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli last year. The motion was backed by the Umkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP).

Lawyer says Shinga will appeal

According to IOL, her lawyer, Sithembiso Mbhele, said they will submit appeal papers soon. He explained that they were given five days to appeal the decision.

Read also

MK Party president Jacob Zuma may call for local government elections to be postponed

Mbhele said if the appeal fails, they will take the matter to court to challenge her removal from the party.

The NFP said its national executive committee (NEC) met on Sunday and agreed with the disciplinary committee’s recommendation to expel Shinga. Acting Secretary-General Sunset Xaba said the decision was made because of the seriousness of the charges and the need to protect the party’s integrity.

See post:

Why was Shinga fired?

Shinga was fired after she failed to follow the NFP's directive in the vote of no confidence motion against KZN Premier and IFP member Thami Ntuli. The party had earlier instructed Shinga, who is its only representative in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature, to support the MKP’s motion. This was part of a plan to form a new coalition with the MKP.

At the time, the NFP had already left the provincial Government of Provincial Unity (GPU). The party claimed the IFP had failed to honour an agreement to give it control of a municipality, but the IFP denied this.

Read also

Julius Malema shares old video of Floyd Shivambu debunking Kenny Kunene’s EFF funding claims

Clarifying her actions, Shinga said the decision to change alliances was not discussed with the provincial executive committee, which she leads. Because of this, she chose to stick with the existing GPU arrangement, which includes the ANC, DA, IFP and NFP.

The NFP said her actions showed a lack of discipline and accountability, adding that party rules apply to everyone, no matter their position.

Shinga says NEC cannot remove her

Shinga argues that the NEC does not have the power to discipline or remove her. She says, according to the party’s constitution, only her branch can charge her.

She also believes her seat in the legislature belongs to the province, not the NEC, and that only the provincial executive committee has the authority to remove her.

This is not the first time Shinga has challenged the party leadership. In July last year, she went to court to stop them from disciplining her. The court ruled in her favour, saying the NEC did not have the authority to act against her.

NFP decides to withdraw from GPU

Previously, Briefly News reported that the National Freedom Party (NFP) announced it is withdrawing from the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Government of Provincial Unity (GPU) with immediate effect. The NFP was part of the GPU and was aligned with the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), the African National Congress (ANC), Democratic Alliance (DA). The NFP had one seat, while ANC had 14 seats, the DA had 11 seats, and the IFP had 15 seats.

Source: Briefly News