KZN PEC and NEC leadership took a swipe at their former ally ex-president Jacob Zuma for his "counterrevolutionary" conduct.
The provincial secretary of ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, Bheki Mtolo says Zuma crippled the ANC .
He must apologise to President Ramaphosa for giving him a weak ANC despite that former president Thabo Mbeki gave him a strong ANC with two-thirds majority.
Zuma is a self-serving, singer, dancer leader who is a liability not a champion of the poor like President Ramaphosa.
The provincial secretary of ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, Bheki Mtolo lambasted former president Jacob Zuma, labelling him a liability who gave President Cyril Ramaphosa a weak ANC after his tenure.
Mtolo didn’t mince his words when reprimanding Zuma saying he must apologize to Ramaphosa because former president Thabo Mbeki gave him a strong ANC. He said Zuma contributed to the ruling party’s downfall and failures during Ramaphosa’s term as the Commander in Chief of the country and ANC president.
Zuma has irked ANC leadership across the country including his former stronghold in KZN by forming MK party and declaring that he will not vote for the ANC. Mtolo described Zuma as self-centred leader, a good singer and dancer who only worked for his family and not the people.
The ANC secretary in KZN said Ramaphosa may not be a good singer and dancer but he is a consummate leader who ensured that the lives of the people are improved by benefiting from government administration.
"Ramaphosa is the champion of the poor, not Zuma. People of Nkandla don't relate with him. They see a man who is there for himself and his family. We are not insulting him but telling the truth. He built his home with taxpayers money and was told to pay it back," adding that the people of Nkandla will now vote for the ANC because the self-serving politician has left the ANC.
Mtolo was addressing ANC cadres’ forum at Inkosi Bhambatha region in KZN on Sunday as the party was consolidating their conquest ahead of the 2024 national and provincial elections.
“Zuma must apologise to the ANC and Ramaphosa because he was given a strong ANC with a majority. He weakened the ANC,” he said.
According to Mtolo, the ANC membership started to descend in 2009 when Zuma ascended the office dismissing claims that Ramaphosa’s leadership drowned the ANC.
He said: “This thing of saying the ANC’s support declined because of Ramaphosa is a lie, it is not true. Data is there, ANC’s downfall started in 2009 when Zuma was the president of the ANC.”
ANC KZN chairperson Siboniso Duma also echoed his ally Mtolo that Zuma is selfish and a narcissist when addressing ANC members at Josiah Gumede Region.
Meanwhile, ANC heavyweights from KZN, Sbu Ndebele and Sihle Zikalala also took Zuma on during the election campaign programs recently. Ndebele who is South African ambassador to India said he is unfazed about new political parties who are challenging the ANC while speaking at a wreath-laying ceremony for Struggle veterans in Ndwedwe, north of Durban, on Sunday.
“Throughout the ages there have always been parties that have sprung up, like the PAC and others in 2009 (referring to Cope). It is a free country, and anyone has the right to associate but the point is what are you standing for, have you mobilised in a democratic way in constituting yourself in the first place?” Ndebele said.
Zikalala, former Zuma’s ally, said the ANC was not endangered by the emergence of the MK party. “Those who have decided to go, have decided, but we represent the people of South Africa and we are here to campaign and win elections,” Zikalala said.
Earlier, Police Minister Bheki Cele, another Zuma’s former associate when addressing ANC activists in eThekwini said he finds it perplexing that all of a sudden Zuma wants to return to the Union Buildings to fix the country’s problems while blaming Ramaphosa and his administration. He also urged Zuma to reveal some hidden compromising information about his comrades and refrain from making threats. “He had the supreme power of the presidency. All of a sudden he wants to fix things. If he wanted to fix things, he should have done that while he was president, not to come here now and talk about fixing things. My commander in exile was Jacob Zuma. When he says he knows things, he must come out and say them so that we can also speak of his business. He has been threatening us. He must come speak, we will also speak,” said Cele who reminded Zuma that during his rape trial they supported the ANC not him because he was the custodian of the ANC presidential office.
Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu warned members of the ANCYL not to be misled by Zuma and his MK party followers who are demonising the ANC and speaking bunkum about President Ramaphosa.
Mchunu said Zuma’s actions are motivated by his hatred for Ramaphosa who gave him presidential pardon. “You cannot one day say there is something called the ANC of Ramaphosa. We are told he joined the ANC at age 16, yet all these years he has never been able to grasp the principles on which the ANC was founded,” said Mchunu, adding that Zuma was motivated by hatred for Ramaphosa.
As expected Ramaphosa's rival disgraced former health minister Zweli Mkhize sang a different tune calling for calm urging ANC leaders not to insult Zuma. Mkhize's utterances were seen as mediocrity and absolute claptrap by ANC supporters because he drew first blood following his public spats aimed at attacking Ramaphosa.
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) confirmed recently that Zuma of the newly formed MK political party cannot contest to become president of the country again because he was arrested, convicted and sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment after he was found guilty of defying a summons to appear before the State Capture Commission in 2021.
Zuma who has been lambasting the ANC led by his political nemesis President Ramaphosa and publicly asserting that he will not vote for the ruling party was released on parole which was declared invalid by the Constitutional Court after serving a few months at Estcourt Correctional Services and sometime in 1 Military Hospital.
He returned to the same Correctional Services centre just for his remission to be administered in August last year.
According to Section 47(e) of the country’s Constitution, every citizen who is qualified to vote for the National Assembly is eligible to be a member of the Assembly, except anyone who, after this section took effect, is convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months' imprisonment without the option of a fine, either in the Republic, or outside if the conduct constituting the offence would have been an offence in the Republic.
This section further states that Zuma who received a presidential pardon from President Ramaphosa will have to contest the elections in 2029 general elections Zuma since he has not finished five years out of jail.
The ICE said: “Therefore, this provision renders former president Zuma disqualified to be on the list of any party contesting an election or to contest as an independent in the upcoming 2024 elections.”
Zuma's action of not respecting the constitution by refusing testify at the Zondo Commission contributed to 2021 July unrest and the South African government reported that 354 people had died in the riots. As of 12 August 2022, 5,500 people had been arrested, in connection with the unrest which resulted in widespread looting, burning and destruction of public and private properties which cost about R50 billion in damage.
Former president Jacob Zuma lambasted by ANC leaders in KZN.
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