Jacob Zuma always has Plan B

IT was a Valentine’s Day much like the one we all endured last Tuesday, when Jacob Zuma stepped down as President of South Africa.

He had been at the helm from May 9, 2009 and left office quite unceremoniously on February 14, 2018.

That is almost nine years of ‘storm and stress’ as psychology students will say. He did not survive those horrid years because it was all honky dory. It was stressful from day one, with one accusation after the other.

His enemies were always ready to throw a bucket of dirt in his direction.

Julius Malema’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) dramatically added to his woes, spoiling almost all his State of the Nation addresses. Msholozi managed to hang in there because he had staying power. He also knows how to come up with ‘Plan B’ as and when required.

He would still be in jail, after that dramatic conviction that led to unprecedented social unrest in the republic, had he not been a man who always has options. It is now history that he was in Eswatini hardly a week ago, as a guest of His Majesty the King. Zuma attended the national prayer session at the Mandvulo Grand Hall in Lozitha and was given the microphone to say a few words.

He said a mouthful, throwing the internet into overdrive and dividing conservatives and democrats further. They have always been divided after all, sometimes violently so.

SPEECH

The long and short of his speech at the palace was that emaSwati were one interrelated tribe and should not be seen fighting. He asked one Dlamini to stop killing the other and vice versa. Realising soon after making this speech, that some adults were not too happy about it, even though they had also seen emaSwati killing fellow citizens in the past year, the resourceful Zuma went for Plan B.

He decided to speak to children and hope they would understand where he was coming from.

After all, they are still young and impressionable.

Their judgement has also not been clouded by financial difficulties, one heartbreak after another or problems at work.

If they have their lunch boxes and little shoes to put wrong feet in (in what is called the banana style around here), all is well.

VISITED

The former president visited Lwati International Preschool in Manzini on Monday and addressed the Grade Zero to Grade Four learners. Their teachers also listened in.

Zuma looked at the little ones. He looked around and decided that it was safe to speak.

He talked about growing up, politics and hope. “Make the country better than it used to be,” he pleaded with the little boys and girls.

He noted that among the learners, there would be pastors, teachers and Members of Parliament (MPs).

“Why do politicians go to Parliament? They go there to discuss how the country can be made better than how they found it; how to make the poor the opposite of poor and how the country can be respected.”

From a bird’s eye view, the selftaught former president, who did not have formal education growing up, was choosing his words carefully because he was speaking to young minds.

CONTINUATION

However, his words were most definitely a continuation of what he had started to say back at the Mandvulo Grand Hall.

Just as he had said before all the brethren in Lozitha, he reiterated that emaSwati were generally peace-loving people.

The young ones neither nodded nor shook their heads as the former president spoke, but isn’t it better to have oblivious children than indifferent adults?