S Africa state broadcaster says Zuma has agreed to go
: South Africa’s SABC state broadcaster reported on Monday that Jacob Zuma had agreed to resign as head of state, citing sources, but the embattled leader’s spokesman quickly dismissed this as “fake news”.
Standing outside a meeting of the top leadership of the ruling ANC, SABC correspondent Tshepo Ikaneng cited “authoritative sources” saying 75-year-old Zuma had agreed to step down and formalities on how to tell the nation were being discussed. The broadcaster also tweeted the report on its Twitter handle.
He provided no further details in his brief live broadcast — the first reports that Zuma might be throwing in the towel after repeated calls from his party to end his scandal-plagued second term a year early.
Zuma’s spokesman, Bongani Ngqulunga, denied the reports in a text message, describing them as “fake news”.
The meeting of the ANC’s decision-making National Executive Committee in a Pretoria hotel had set the stage for a decisive showdown between Zuma stalwarts and those backing a swift transfer of power to new party leader and current deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa, 65, says he has held direct talks with Zuma over a transfer of power, and said on Sunday the meeting of the party’s executive committee would be aiming on Monday to “finalise” the situation. The party executive has the authority to order Zuma to step down as head of state, although there is some domestic media speculation that he might resist this. REUTERS