The Congress of the People (Cope) declined to confirm or deny whether Reverend Mvhume Dandala will be its presidential candidate for the upcoming elections.

It was thought that the race to lead the party was being closely contested by founding members Mbhazima Shilowa and Mosiuoa Lekota, but tensions rose over who would be the face of Cope.

Dandala, who has just returned from Kenya where he was involved in peace talks following that country's post-election violence, came out on top of the national list, according to Sapa.

This decision appears to be far from unanimous as one woman stormed out of a high-level meeting in anger on Thursday.

Outside the conference room where the discussions were held, a senior member voiced his frustration at doing all the groundwork, only for an outside candidate to claim the limelight.

General Secretary Charlotte Lobe acknowledged there was robust debate during the meeting.

"When you discuss things about who should do what, you still have people with different views, so those are not tensions. They are healthy," said Lobe.

It is clear from Cope's election manifesto that it is campaigning on a ticket of morality and anti-corruption and it is believed that Dandala, a highly respected peacemaker and head of the Methodist church of Southern Africa, will enforce that message far more effectively as president than either Lekota or Shilowa.

Dandala also played a crucial role in talks in South Africa before the 1994 transition.

Eyewitness News