Maduna, who serves on the ANC's national working committee, surprised the party at the weekend when he said he was no longer prepared to serve the ANC in the National Assembly following the furore that has erupted over allegations that he and prosecutions chief Bulelani Ngcuka abused the national prosecuting authority.

Party spokesman Smuts Ngonyama pointed out that the ANC was still in the process of selecting its candidates for next year's election, and there would be an appropriate time for its members to accept or decline nomination.

Only after the election would President Thabo Mbeki "invite people to join the new cabinet (and) these people will similarly have an opportunity to accept or decline the invitation".

The committee said it trusted that Maduna would advise the organisation of his position through the appropriate channels a sign, insiders said, that he was being given a chance to rethink his position.

The committee also reiterated its support for Deputy President Jacob Zuma, who has become embroiled in bribery allegations, saying it was "unanimous in its endorsement of the principle that a person should be presumed innocent until proven otherwise".

With acknowledgement to the Business Day.