Mayor pulls plug on Zuma album
DA claims victory over backtrack
Jacob Zuma’s singing voice has been muted – for now. That’s according to eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede, who briefed councillors and members of the executive committee at a meeting yesterday that there was “no such thing” of a municipality album with the former president. Gumede said she had learned about the album via the media but that proper protocols had not been followed with regard to a request for such a deal.
“Nobody has informed us about this project. Under normal circumstances, politicians make political announcements.
As an ANC-deployed mayor I would have briefed the ANC caucus first before making such an announcement. “The protocol was not followed and we are prepared to speak about the items once we get a full briefing.
“As things stand, there is no such [thing]. Only the city manager and myself will speak to the public with authority about this matter,” Gumede said.
In response, DA councillor Nicole Graham said Gumede’s response showed that the ANC was “buckling under DA and public pressure”. “While we welcome this backtrack, this proves exactly what the DA has been saying – that eThekwini’s parks unit has gone rogue, and that the tail is wagging the proverbial dog in Durban.
“The city manager has refused to pronounce on the issue, despite numerous requests from the DA, nor have they publicly rebuked parks head Thembinkosi Ngcobo’s utterances about the deal,” Graham said.
Last month, Ngcobo claimed that the Zuma album would be produced with the help of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, who had offered their studio facilities for free.