The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Democratic Alliance

  • S/Africa: Ex-AU commission chairwoman sworn in as MP

    S/Africa: Ex-AU commission chairwoman sworn in as MP

    Former African Union (AU) Commission Chairwoman, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, has been sworn in as new Member of Parliament (MP) in South Africa amid speculations that she will be promoted to cabinet position.

    Parliamentary Spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said “Dlamini-Zuma will immediately undergo an induction programme and be provided with necessary tools of trade to assist her with carrying out her parliamentary duties without delay.”

    It had been speculated that the deployment of Dlamini-Zuma in Parliament would be used as springboard to propel her to cabinet position in an imminent cabinet reshuffle.

    However, Dlamini-Zuma, emerging from the swearing ceremony, told reporters that she had no idea of a cabinet reshuffle.

    She said: “as far as I’m concerned, I’m coming as a Member of Parliament. I’ve been sworn in. That’s all I know.”

    Dlamini-Zuma is seen as President Jacob Zuma’s preferred successor in the 2019 general elections.

    According to opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), Dlamini-Zuma’s elevation to MP and likely a cabinet minister seems to be a carefully orchestrated move to buttress her presidential campaign.

    DA Chief Whip John Steenhuisen said: “it amounts to nothing less than state resources being used to support a candidate for ANC presidency.”

    According to the DA, the decision to send Dlamini-Zuma to parliament also seems to precipitate yet another cabinet reshuffle.

    “Those members of Zuma’s cabinet who were outspoken against Zuma, and those who belong to the rebellious South African Communist Party (SACP), are certain to be fired by Zuma in the cabinet reshuffle,’’ the DA said.

  • South African parliament begins debate in Zuma no-confidence motion

    South African parliament begins debate in Zuma no-confidence motion

    The leader of the opposition Democratic Alliance urged South African lawmakers to oust President Jacob Zuma at the start of a parliamentary debate on a motion of no-confidence in the scandal-plagued leader on Tuesday.

    Zuma, who has held power since 2009, would have to relinquish office if he loses the vote expected once the debate ends.

    “I plead with you let us put the people of South Africa first and vote to remove Jacob Zuma today,” Mmusi Maimane said.

    Speaking on behalf of the ruling African National Congress party, deputy chief whip Doris Dlakude said the motion against Zuma amounted to a “power grab” by the opposition.

    “The ANC rejects this motion with the contempt it deserves,” she said.

    NAN reports that protesters blocked roads with burning tyres and rocks in a show of opposition to President Zuma hours before the South African parliament was due to vote on a no-confidence motion which could force him to step down.

    Newspaper headlines reflected the high stakes at play “JZ’s moment of truth” read The Star, while The Sowetan declared: “High Noon for Zuma”.

    Zuma, who has held power since 2009, has struggled to fend off opposition accusations of corruption and mismanaging the economy.

    If parliament votes in favor of the no-confidence motion, he and his entire cabinet would have to step down.

    The parliamentary speaker on Monday had ruled that the vote would be a secret ballot a decision the opposition hopes will embolden members of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) to vote against Zuma.

    It was unclear, however, which way the vote would go.

    The ANC has 249 seats in the 400-seat parliament and the opposition controls 151 seats, so it would take 50 ANC lawmakers backing the opposition to vote Zuma and his cabinet out.

    Markets had welcomed Speaker Baleka Mbete’s decision, with the rand, bonds and banking shares surging after Mbete’s announcement, buoyed by the prospect of Zuma’s removal. On Tuesday, the rand traded flat as markets waited anxiously.

    In the past year, Zuma has upset investors, in particular by removing finance minister Pravin Gordhan in March.

    The country’s credit rating has been downgraded to junk by two of the top three credit rating agencies, unemployment is at a 14-year high of 27.7 per cent and the economy is back in recession.

    Zuma has also faced a welter of corruption accusations, which he denies, and the ANC, which has governed since the end of apartheid in 1994, is deeply divided.

    “Jacob Zuma has brought our nation to its knees,” the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) party, which brought the motion to parliament, said in a statement urging lawmakers to vote the president out.

    Across Gauteng province, where the commercial hub Johannesburg and capital Pretoria are located, protesters blocked major roads with burning tyres and rocks.

  • South Africa’s ANC loses capital in polls

    South Africa’s governing African National Congress has been defeated by the opposition Democratic Alliance in local polls in the capital Pretoria. With counting almost over, the DA has 43 per cent of the vote compared with the ANC’s 41 per cent in Tshwane, the municipality that includes Pretoria.

    The DA will need to form a coalition in order to secure control there, the BBC reports.

    The two major parties are also locked in a tight race to control the country’s largest city, Johannesburg.

    The ANC has also lost Nelson Mandela Bay metropolitan area in the Eastern Cape, which includes Port Elizabeth, to the DA.

    It is the ANC’s worst electoral performance since it was elected to power at the end of apartheid and the replacement of white minority rule by democracy in 1994, and the first time since then that it has lost control of the capital.

    The DA has won 93 seats in Tshwane, while the ANC is second with 89 seats in the 214-seat municipal council.

    Observers said a host of corruption scandals and internal party squabbles are to blame for the ANC’s decline.

    The South African economy has stagnated since 2008’s global financial crisis, and the country has one of the highest rates of economic inequality in the world.

     

  • South African’s ANC suffers major electoral setback

    South Africa’s governing African National Congress (ANC) has suffered its worst electoral setback since apartheid ended in 1994.

    With 94 per cent of the votes counted after Wednesday’s municipal elections, the party has lost the key battleground of Nelson Mandela Bay to the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA).

    The two parties are in a close fight for Johannesburg and Pretoria, the BBC reports.

    But the ANC is still in the lead nationally, with 54 per cent of the vote.

    The ANC has won more than 60 per cent of the vote at every election since the end of apartheid more than two decades ago.

    Unemployment and corruption scandals surrounding President Jacob Zuma have tarnished the ANC’s image.

    Named after ANC liberation hero and South Africa’s first democratically elected president, the loss of Nelson Mandela Bay is a big blow to the party.

    Many of the leaders of the struggle against apartheid come from the area.

  • ANC leads South African election

    South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) has taken more than 59 percent of the votes in the national election after a third of the ballots were counted, the electoral commission said on Thursday.

    Reuters reports that the ANC’s main rival, the Democratic Alliance, had more than 27 percent, while the ultra-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) had just above four percent.