NDZ cannot be serious
LIKE any leader President Jacob Zuma has made mistakes. For some these are extraordinary compared to his predecessors’. However his weaknesses are exacerbated by ANC “members”, either through cancerous patronage, ignorance, or fear. Perhaps responsibility is better placed on the shoulders of those very close to him, such as in the national executive committee and high up in the government, who know to the hilt what is going on – hence their unwavering and unscrupulous support for him.
One has to wonder about what other possible bombshells beyond Nkandla, the Waterkloof Airforce base landing and so forth, might explode with severe consequences after Zuma has stepped down.
En route to the ANC national elective conference in December nobody should attempt to thwart suspicions or the logic of critical and bold ANC members, let alone the general public, about the “coincidence” of the desperate attempts being made for Zuma’s erstwhile wife, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, to succeed him.
It remains after all, a profound wonder that this woman veteran would, as she criss-crosses the country attempting to persuade the nation to consider her as the potential presidential candidate, actually believe herself fit for the job, considering the prevailing state of the ANC and the government itself.
The ANC provides a member with the space to decline a nomination, without necessarily elaborating on the reasons. This is surely something she would ponder on at this juncture if she was truly the ardent, caring advocate of unity needed to precede “radical economic transformation” – something that any other woman could spearhead and deliver. She served adequately during the term of Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki and Zuma with the cherry on the top being the chair of the African Union. What is this desperation on her part now?
The response is obvious: ANC members or branches have spoken, but these days, they are spoken for even if they resist.
Regrettably this begins to hurt the movement. The recent “sex scandal” around her contesting comrade Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa springs to mind, in which attempts have been made to badly disfigure the latter in the eyes of the South African people.
Assuming that Ramaphosa has committed the alleged acts, he could be absolved and come out unscathed because our “Through The Eye of the Needle” document underscores that; “the abiding quality of leadership is to learn from mistakes, to appreciate one’s weaknesses and correct them”.
Yes, virtually all our provinces have organisational challenges, but what is happening in KwaZulu-Natal insofar as political killings tears one’s heart asunder. Yet some of our leaders continue to be pig-headed, imposing decisions that seem to be personally convenient.
Let’s pause and reflect; this is supposedly Oliver Reginald Tambo’s year! We still have an opportunity to swallow our venomous pride and review our stance on this leadership phenomenon – or obsession – before the national conference and 2019. We dare not snub the humiliating losses of the 2016 local elections and blindly hope our ANC will survive through mere luck or its enduring brand as well as propaganda, something which our people are beginning to be disillusioned by. Please mend the ANC before it’s too late! — Tony Cyril Mtintsilana, King William’s Town