"There was no clandestine meeting between me and the ANC," Zanele Magwaza-Msibi said in response to reports she could join the ruling party.
"We can't allow our political careers to end like this. The IFP leader (Dr Mangosuthu Buthelezi) said there will never be a relationship between the party and us," she said. She was addressing her supporters outside the court after it dismissed with costs her application to force the party to hold its elective conference, and prevent a disciplinary enquiry against her.
"If that door (the IFP) is closed, other doors are open. We have to take a decision about our future."
A decision had to be taken quickly because the elections were around the corner, she said.
Magwaza-Msibi's supporters were expected to meet in Pietermaritzburg and hold a press briefing in Durban on Wednesday. She was expected to have meetings throughout the country, followed by a large gathering at the weekend.
"I urge you to go back home and consult. We need to work very hard and take decisions," she told her supporters.
Judge Swain read the judgement on behalf of Judge Chima Patel. He did not give reasons for the ruling. Wiseman Mcoyi, of the "Friends of VZ" group that supports Magwaza-Msibi, Nhlanhla Khawula, and Thokozani Zulu lodged papers in the same court in July challenging their expulsion and the legality of the current party leadership. The three were kicked out of the IFP after they openly campaigned for Magwaza-Msibi.
Magwaza-Msibi also wanted the court to order the party to hold its elective conference, which had been postponed six times since July last year. Her supporters claim she was being prevented from taking part in the race to succeed Buthelezi.
One Magwaza-Msibi supporter described the court's decision as a blessing in disguise. They said they would now campaign freely without fear of being expelled from the party.
"The judgment is a blessing in disguise. The future will lead us to freedom. Our leader (Magwaza-Msibi) will not go to hibernate. She will continue to speak for us," said Andile Biyela, a student representative council president at Mangosuthu Technikon.
In 2004, Dr Ziba Jiyane and other leaders left the IFP and formed their own party after they complained about a lack of transformation.
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/Politics/IFPs-Magwaza-Msibi-ponders-future-20110117