Finally! Zuma falls
Mashatile says it’s now time for party to begin new era
President Jacob Zuma resigned last night as head of state but remained defiant, arguing that he had done nothing wrong.
His resignation came just hours ahead of a vote of no confidence.
Addressing the nation from the Union Buildings last night about his resignation, the embattled Zuma said he did not fear a motion of confidence or impeachment as he was not in government for perks.
The ANC saluted the contribution Zuma has made in the party.
“While this may mark an end of his term of office as president of the republic, we hope and believe comrade Jacob Zuma will continue to work with the ANC as we undertake our programme of fundamental organisational renewal and uniting all South Africans behind a shared vision of transformation and economic recovery,” ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte said.
Had Zuma not resigned, it would have been all over for him today as the ANC was ready to remove him through parliament.
This comes after the party’s 249-member parliamentary caucus yesterday unanimously agreed to table a motion of no confidence in Zuma’s leadership.
The caucus took the decision following Zuma’s repeated refusal to step down after being asked to do so by the party’s top leadership structures, including the national executive committee, the national working committee and the party’s top six officials in the past 10 days.
ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile, who had been sent to brief ANC MPs on the matter of Zuma’s recall, said yesterday the governing party had lost patience and would no longer allow Zuma to cause anxiety within the country.
He said the ball was in Zuma’s court to resign.
Mashatile said: “Our people want to see change, they want to see the new leadership taking over the management, not only of the ANC but of the state …
“We want to focus on building the economy and deal with the challenges our people are facing, so we don’t have time to be bickering about who should be president, who should not.”
Zuma’s fate was to be sealed at a specially convened sitting of the National Assembly
We hope and believe comrade Jacob Zuma will continue to work with ANC
when it was due to meet to discuss a no confidence motion tabled by the EFF.
The ANC had acceded to the EFF’s motion being brought forward by a week on an urgent basis.
Unlike the previous such motion in August last year, which was voted on by secret ballot, today’s motion was to be done by open ballot.
Meanwhile, parliament is expected to elect Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa as Zuma’s replacement tomorrow pending the availability of Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng.
The national legislature has also resolved to hold the State of the Nation Address tomorrow night after it was postponed last week.