Who’s the biggest loser? Zuma

Fired as president and the first former ANC president to be suspended, Jacob Zuma is losing on both national and party levels.

The ANC national executive committee (NEC), in a unanimous decision, has confirmed the suspension of his membership of the party with immediate effect.

It was understood Zuma had contravened the ANC constitution by publicly announcing he would campaign and vote for another party, the newly established uMkhonto weSizwe

(MK) party.

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula said Zuma was actively impugning the integrity of the ANC and campaigning to dislodge the ANC from power while claiming he had not terminated his membership.

Mbalula said the party invoked its constitution rule 25.60, which stated: “If justifiable exceptional circumstances warrant an immediate decision of temporary suspension of a member without eliciting the comment or response of such member as contemplated above, the NEC, the national working committee, the provincial executive committee or the provincial working committee, as the case may be, may summarily suspend such member.”

Now the question remains: what is left for Zuma?

The ANC opted to take Zuma through a disciplinary process instead of going for immediate expulsion.

While this process may take time, Zuma will have to decide if he will appear before the ANC national disciplinary committee (NDC), or whether he will challenge the suspension.

This is same process former Free State premier Ace Magashule was hit with.

In the recent past, Magashule was found guilty by the NDC of contravening the ANC constitution by failing to withdraw and apologise for his decision to suspend party president Cyril Ramaphosa in May 2021.

The NDC decided to dismiss him from the party.

The committee underwent a lengthy and protracted process marred by countless delays to get Magashule to the hearing.

The process to call Magashule to account began in November 2021, about six months after his failure to apologise and retract his “suspension” of Ramaphosa.

Reacting to the ANC’s decision to suspend Zuma, MK spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said that, as far as he knew, Zuma was still a member of the ANC.

“We have seen social media reports of him being suspended but at this stage he remains a member of the ANC, as he stated previously,” Ndhlela said.

He added that Zuma had not received communication from the ANC on the matter.

Ndhlela said he could not comment on whether Zuma would challenge the move.

At this stage he remains a member of the ANC