Rattling the ANC’s cage before election
Last Friday former president Jacob Zuma, leader of the newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, turned 82 and received lots of birthday messages. But the one that caught the public’s eye was from EFF leader Julius Malema.
In his message posted on X, Malema wished Zuma well before showering him with praise: “Your unwavering determination and leadership continue to inspire us all.”
He did not end there. “As we witness your relentless fight at the age of 82, it compels us to question ourselves, ‘what excuse do we have not to fight?’ I firmly believe that political differences among Africans should never lead to enmity, but rather should be viewed as different perspectives,” he said before inviting Zuma to a “rematch” tea session at his Polokwane home.
In 2021, shortly before his imprisonment, Zuma hosted a tea party at his Nkandla homestead. The EFF delegation, which arrived in style, included celebrity advocate Dali Mpofu and Malema’s deputy, Floyd Shivambu. Curiously, the EFF delegation was accompanied by ANC leaders Mzwandile Masina, former mayor of Ekurhuleni, and former ANC national executive committee member and stalwart Tony Yengeni.
Little is known about what was discussed at that meeting except for attempts by the EFF to persuade Zuma to observe the rule of law — apparently the EFF’s new pillar of struggle. Zuma, who is suspended from the ANC, had been sentenced by the Constitutional Court to an 18month jail term (with no option of a fine) for contempt arising from his defiance of a subpoena to appear before the Zondo state-capture commission. Then corrections commissioner Arthur Fraser released him after three months on medical grounds. .
The political landscape has changed since 2021. Zuma has incurred a post-apartheid criminal conviction. Despite his protestations, signs are that he is the brains behind the formation of MK, a breakaway from the ANC. The conviction is a subject of law court reviews.
Last Tuesday, the Electoral Court ruled he could stand as a candidate in the general election despite the conviction. The Electoral Commission (IEC), which upheld an objection to him standing as a candidate, has approached the Constitutional Court to appeal against the Electoral Court ruling.
In most cases, including his corruption trial, his private prosecution of President Cyril Ramaphosa and election matters, Zuma is represented by Mpofu, former EFF national chair. In December 2022, the Ramaphosa faction of the ANC routed Zuma’s “radical economic transformation” faction, which included Masina and Yengeni. Yengeni continues to serve in the ANC veterans’ structures.
The Ramaphosa-led ANC has (un)wittingly veered to the right. It has not nationalised the Reserve Bank. It is not rushing to expropriate land without compensation. Even though the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces approved the National Health Insurance Bill Ramaphosa is yet to sign it into law. He will probably do so before the election, triggering private-sector litigation.
The parliamentary ANC has impeached three prominent African legal professionals: former public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane and judges Nkola Motata and John Hlophe. As well as his imprisonment, these issues form the core of Zuma’s grievances against what he calls Ramaphosa’s ANC.
In the last four months since the December launch of MK, Zuma has been holding rallies around the country. He has not published any policies to resolve SA’s pressing problems. Nor has he trumpeted achievements of his presidential term such as fee-free higher education and building two new universities. Instead, he has been railing against Ramaphosa. He believes the ANC has to be rescued.
Talk in his circles always pivots towards one problem: Ramaphosa. That Ramaphosa’s removal is a panacea for the ANC’s and SA’s problems.
None of this is ideological. It is all personal, plain grudge politics. Devoid of political ideology Zuma, a Zulu nationalist and traditionalist, has yet to condemn tribalism, regionalism or narrow nationalism.
Notwithstanding its many faults, the EFF, which helped oust him from the Union Buildings in 2018, is ideologically pure. It has an unapologetic pan-African posture, and wants socialism. It wants banks, mines and land nationalised.
The exchange of warm birthday messages — from Zuma (last month on Malema’s 43rd birthday) and now from Malema — shows the adage is true. There are no permanent enemies in politics, only permanent interests. Malema has moved on from the hurt of being expelled by Zuma’s ANC in 2012.
So, what are the permanent interests behind this Malema-Zuma rapprochement? Ramaphosa’s removal is the most obvious and immediate. Until last Friday’s message the prevailing thinking was that Zuma’s definition of success on May 29 is to reduce the ANC by 6%8%. After the elections, so the thinking goes, he will offer the ANC his share of national to enable it to go on governing nationally and especially in his native KwaZuluNatal, where he remains popular.
But all of this is contingent on the ANC removing Ramaphosa. The ANC will also be dissuaded from forming a coalition with the DA. There has been talk that DA and ANC funders not only prefer an ANC-DA coalition, but might force it after May 29 even if the ANC scrapes in with more than 50% of the vote.
With the campaign season moving into overdrive, it is not clear immediately whether Zuma will travel to Polokwane for tea with Malema. Both men are busy. But for now the birthday bromance serves a useful purpose. It rattles the ANC’s cage. Malema and Zuma are masters at playing political mind games.