African National Congress (ANC) Deputy Chairperson in Mpumalanga Speedy Mashilo has called for the release of the man who stabbed Janusz Walus in prison.

Walus, who killed struggle icon Chris Hani, was ordered to be released on parole by the Constitutional Court.

He was stabbed in prison by a fellow inmate, earlier this week, ahead of his release.  

The provincial branch held its Provincial General Council (PGC) on Friday to discuss the policies it will be proposed at the ANC’s December Elective Conference.

Mashilo said that was upsetting that the ConCourt, which also ruled that former President Jacob Zuma should go back to prison, expected society to understand Walus’s release.

“That should be a worry to us. We defend the constitution, but does it defend the same issues that we want to deal with? Maybe not or maybe yes," he said.

Meanwhile, Mashilo said the Congress of South African Trade Unions’s unhappiness with some ANC policies was a critical matter that needed to be discussed.

“We must minimise our differences here as a province, so that when we go to the conference, we have the same agenda. We are expected to present ourselves as the PGC that we are because at the end of the day, we need to take the resolution forward. The resolutions should be able to change our lives,” he said.

The ANC Mpumalanga chairperson and the secretary-general were absent during the PGC, as they attended the NEC meeting to discuss the Phala Phala matter and President Cyril Ramaphosa's fate as President.

“This is a very serious matter that we acknowledge the discussion of, even on social media platform. It is okay because this is a democratic country but as the ANC we are mandated to lead the country. Anything we do has to assist the country going forward,” he said.