Cosatu says although the ANC has every right to charge one of its MPs, Makhosi Khoza, doing so would not help "cleanse" the party of its issues.
Cosatu's spokesperson Sizwe Pamla said the position of the federation -- a tripartite alliance partner of the ANC -- on Khoza is that it would continue to support any person who speaks out on corruption.
Khoza was formally charged by the party's KwaZulu-Natal branch on Wednesday on two counts of bringing the party into disrepute by her public statements on calling for President Jacob Zuma to step down. In the charge sheet, Khoza is accused of breaking 11 rules of the ANC.
"We would have expected the ANC to start at the top [Zuma]. It won't rehabilitate or cleanse itself by charging Khoza," Pamla said.
"But the party has every right to charge their members and we will not condemn them for it. But we do not think anything will be resolved by charging Khoza."
But the ANC's Youth League was delighted at the news the outspoken Khoza was being charged.
The league's spokesperson, Mondli Mkhize, said the ANC took "too much time" in charging her.
"The damage over time cannot be tolerated... When someone commits an offence knowingly, it means there was intention. It is a huge offence. Those are the things that the ANC must deal with," Mkhize said.
"Khoza was making noise, seeking public attention and sympathy."
Mkhize said Khoza is "playing to the gallery".
"She is that kind of person who demands her way or the highway," Mkhize said.
ANC KZN spokesman Mdumiseni Ntuli said the charges emanated from a decision by the Provincial Executive Committee that Khoza's conduct had brought the party into disrepute.
"We will leave the matter to the provincial disciplinary committee. Ours was that her public conduct brought the party into disrepute. How the provincial disciplinary committee gathers that evidence for their own case is a matter that we will leave to them," Ntuli said.
"We will leave the matters to the internal processes... so that we don't jeopardize the case and hopefully it will be concluded speedily."