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Tag: Jacob Zuma

  • Ramaphosa says it’s time to review cabinet make up

    Ramaphosa says it’s time to review cabinet make up

    President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa said on Tuesday it was time to consider the make-up of his cabinet, amid growing speculation about whether Finance Minister Gigaba would keep his job.

    Ramaphosa was sworn in as head of state on Thursday after his scandal-plagued predecessor, Jacob Zuma, reluctantly resigned on orders of the ruling African National Congress ( ANC ) after nine years in office blighted by corruption, economic mismanagement and disputed appointments.

    In his first state of nation address on Friday, Ramaphosa strongly hinted at a cabinet shake-up when he said he would review the make-up and size of government departments.

    Investors are watching closely to see if Gigaba, who is due to deliver the budget speech on Wednesday, keeps his job.

    “This is the time to walk, to reflect even about cabinet and all that,” he told reporters on television news channel eNCA during his walk, in response to a question on whether there was still time to shake up his cabinet ahead of the budget speech.

    “I’ll be walking maybe three times a week, walking with our people,” he said. “I want my tummy to fall, so I‘m going to continue walking.”

    At a separate event in Cape Town, Gigaba declined to comment when asked by reporters about the speculation over his job.

    However, his deputy Sfiso Buthelezi, who sat next to his boss, said Gigaba would deliver the budget on Wednesday.

    “The question that is being asked of the minister, if he is going to present the budget. That is why we are here.

    “There is a budget that is going to be presented tomorrow and it is going to be presented by nobody else but Malusi Gigaba,” Buthelezi said.

    On Friday, Ramaphosa delivered a message of optimism and renewal Friday in his first state of the nation address, saying it’s time for South Africans to put discord behind them and that the country will “turn the tide” on corruption in state institutions this year.

    Ramaphosa’s address capped a dramatic week in which he was elected by ruling party lawmakers following the resignation of predecessor Jacob Zuma, whose tenure was marked by corruption scandals.

    Zuma was supposed to give the speech on Thursday, but it was postponed because of the leadership crisis that fueled uncertainty and anxiety in the country of 57 million people.

    “We should put behind us the era of diminishing trust in public institutions and weakened confidence in our country’s public leaders,” said Ramaphosa, who was Zuma’s deputy before becoming South Africa’s fifth president since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

    “A new dawn is upon us,” he said in a speech in parliament that drew applause but was criticized by the opposition as short on meaningful solutions.

    Ramaphosa, 65, faces the hard task of rooting out corruption that flourished in both state enterprises and the private sector under Zuma, implicating figures in the ruling African National Congress party that he now leads.
    In addition, he must tackle sluggish economic growth, high unemployment and economic inequality that are among South Africa’s most deep-rooted problems.

    The new president said his administration would concentrate on creating jobs and attracting investment, while also possibly downsizing bloated government departments and restructuring state-owned enterprises that are inefficient and prone to corruption.

    “This is the year in which we will turn the tide on corruption in our public institutions.

    “The criminal justice institutions have been taking initiatives that will enable us to deal effectively with corruption,” Ramaphosa said.

    South African authorities want to arrest a key member of the Gupta business family accused of using its links to Zuma to influence Cabinet ministers and secure state contracts.

    The suspect, Ajay Gupta, is considered a fugitive after failing to turn himself in, according to police.

    Eight people, including a member of the Gupta family, have already been arrested as part of an investigation into alleged corruption involving the Guptas, who deny any wrongdoing.

    The family is a flashpoint for national anger over “state capture,” the term used by South Africans to describe an allegedly wide-ranging effort to loot state enterprises under Zuma.

    Ramaphosa said he supports the work of a judicial commission that is about to investigate the phenomenon, but one opposition leader said the new president would have to turn on his own political party if he is serious about fighting graft.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Buhari congratulates President Ramaphosa

    Buhari congratulates President Ramaphosa

    President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa on his election on Thursday as the President of the Republic of South Africa.

    The President also felicitated with the African National Congress (ANC)), and the Government and people of South Africa, on the peaceful transfer of power that resulted in the election of President Ramaphosa.

    Read Also: SGF: Buhari’ll run in 2019

    The Nigerian leader, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, also saluted the leadership and sta Buhari tesmanship of former President Jacob Zuma, and wishes him the best in his future endeavours.

    President Buhari looked forward to working with the new President of South Africa, and to enhanced cooperation of the Governments of Africa’s two leading economies.

  • South African stocks in demand after Zuma quits, rand soars

    South African stocks in demand after Zuma quits, rand soars

    South African stocks index rose as much as five per cent on Thursday, putting the main index on track for its biggest one-day gain in more than three years.

    The currency remained on the front foot, soaring to its firmest since early 2015, in the wake of Zuma’s exit.

    Analysts have, however, warned the rally faces serious obstacles ahead of a budget speech next Wednesday.

    Zuma quit late on Wednesday, reluctantly heeding orders by the ruling African National Congress ( ANC ) to bring an end to a nine-year tenure punctuated by scandals, stagnant economic growth and policy uncertainty.

    As at 1530 GMT, the blue chip Top-40 index surged four per cent to 52,665 points, pulling back from a high of 53,072 achieved earlier but still on course for its biggest one-day gain since Sept. 2015.

    The broader All-share index was up by 3.72 per cent at 59,533 points.

    “The big news is that Zuma has now resigned and that has created a lot of euphoria.

    “South African incorporated, banks, retailers and the like are all looking sharply better as a result,” said Independent Securities’ trader Ryan Woods.

    South African banks considered the barometer of both economic and political sentiment were a feature on the gainers’ list.

    The banking index surged 5.8 per cent with Nedbank rising 5.37 per cent and rival FirstRand up 6.4 per cent.

    Banks have largely borne the brunt of Zuma’s policy decisions that included the sacking of two respected finance ministers, Nhlanhla Nene and Pravin Gordhan.

    That, along with a weak economy, contributed to sovereign credit ratings downgrades to junk by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch.

    In reaction to Zuma’s resignation, ratings agency Moody’s said it was focused on the new leadership’s response to economic challenges. S&P Global Ratings said the leadership change would not immediately affect the credit status.

    Cyril Ramaphosa, former chairman of African biggest telecoms operator MTN Group, was sworn in as president on Thursday.

    Ramaphosa, who has vowed to fight corruption and revitalise the economy, is seen by business leaders and investors as well placed to turn around the economy.

    South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to grow by less than one percent this year.

    Another key issue facing the 65-year-old president is policy uncertainty in South Africa’s mining industry, an important economic engine, which has been fighting in court with Zuma’s mines minister, Mosebenzi Zwane, over an increase in black ownership targets.

    But some analysts said that the former union leader’s to-do list is way too long to make an immediate impact.

    In the foreign exchange market, the rand advanced to levels last seen in February 2015.

    “The good gains the rand has made could be extended toward 11.55/dollar, and move toward 11.00/dollar baring any further credit rating downgrades for S.A. and a credit positive budget,” said Investec’s Chief Analyst Annabel Bishop in a note.

    At 1515 GMT, the rand was at 11.6600 against the dollar, having reached a session-best of 11.6025 earlier per cent stronger than its New York overnight close and at levels last seen in Feb.  2015.

    “The economy is coming off an extremely low base so there is good chance the optimism will be around for some time, but Ramaphosa has to very soon move from the honeymoon phase to the doing phase,” said Chief Executive of Canon Assets Management Adrian Saville.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Agoro to Buhari: Emulate Zuma and resign now

    Agoro to Buhari: Emulate Zuma and resign now

    The National Chairman of the National Action Council (NAC), Dr. Olapade Agoro, on Thursday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to resign from office immediately, saying the All Progressive Congress (APC) has failed Nigerians.

    Agoro, who described the APC as a “den of corrupt politicians” said the presidential assignment given to the National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to reconcile all aggrieved members of the party is an “impossible task of waking the dead.”

    He said “no amount of rapprochement would resurrect the party.”

    According to Agoro, Nigeria needed new set of leadership to clear the mess foisted on the country by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and APC.

    He also criticized former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s third force approach.

    The NAC chairman, who spoke in Ibadan, Oyo State, reasoned that if the former South African President, Jacob Zuma, could resign, Buhari has no moral right to stay in office because “his government is more corrupt than that of Zuma.”

    He said “the President who is claiming to fight corruption is swimming deeply in corruption.”

    He said: “We have instances of many politicians being charged for corruption but instead of clearing themselves, they dumped their parties and joined the APC and that’s the end of the case. What do we say about Mainagate and other corrupt practices worse than that of Abacha? Buhari is a noise maker on the issue of the fight against corruption. He himself is leading a corrupt government.”

     

     

  • Zuma refuses to resign, says he is being victimised

    Zuma refuses to resign, says he is being victimised

    Jacob Zuma has refused to heed calls to step down as South African president, denouncing moves by the ruling African Nation Congress ( ANC ) party to remove him following a string of damaging corruption scandals.

    The ANC formally asked him to resign on Tuesday.

    “I am being victimised here. I think there has been a misinterpretation,” Zuma said in an attempt to present his side of the story.

    Zuma however indicated he would accept the outcome of a parliamentary vote of no confidence against him, which has been scheduled for Thursday.

    During more than a week of negotiations with the ANC’s key decision-making body, Zuma said that “nobody provided the reasons, nobody has been able to provide me with what I have done.”

    Zuma denied any wrongdoing over the corruption allegations of recent years. “There is no problem. There has never been a problem,” he said in the televised remarks.

    The ANC “will regret the crisis they have caused,” he said, adding he wsa planning to make a formal statement on the calls for his resignation later on Wednesday.

    During the negotiations with the ANC leadership, Zuma said he had in principle agreed to step down but presented “a package” of demands that included him staying in power for several more months.

    The ANC didn’t accept those conditions, said Zuma.

    “I am open to further discussion, but they are rushing [into a vote of no confidence],” he said, adding that he was unjustly “portrayed as this person who is defying the leadership.”

    If Zuma loses the vote, parliament may elect a successor the same day, according to ANC treasurer general Paul Mashatile.

    “We will possibly elect a new president on Thursday … if not Friday,” said Mashatile, assuming scandal-hit Zuma will lose the vote.

    Zuma’s successor would most likely be Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, who in December took over from Zuma as president of the ANC.

    Zuma, who became president in 2009 and whose second term officially ends in 2019, has already faced six no-confidence motions, four of which were voted on.

    This time, the vote is likely to succeed because the ANC holds a large majority of seats in parliament, and the vote of no confidence is decided by a simple majority.

    If Zuma loses the vote, South Africa’s chief justice will preside over the election of a new president, while the cabinet will have to resign.

    The ANC caucus in parliament decided to hasten the vote, which had been initially requested by opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters for February 22.

    “We want certainty.

    “We would like the incoming president [to hold the postponed State of the Nation address] without delay,” he said.

    Earlier on Wednesday, police arrested three people from the Johannesburg home of the Gupta family, linked to the corruption scandals that have engulfed Zuma.

    Hangwani Mulaudzi, the spokesman of the elite crime investigation unit the Hawks, confirmed the arrests to dpa, without disclosing the identity of those arrested.

    Arrest warrants had been issued for two other people who were expected to hand themselves over to the police, Mulaudzi said.

    Media reports said those arrested are expected to appear before a commercial crimes court in the city of Bloemfontein later on Wednesday.

    The influential Gupta family, which has business interests in the computer equipment, mining, air travel, energy, technology and media industries, have been accused of influencing the state together with Zuma through lucrative business deals and possibly even influencing ministerial appointments.

    Most recently, the family came under fire when one of their companies took over the management of a small-scale dairy farm, which shortly thereafter received a payment of 34 million rands (2.85 million dollars) from the provincial agriculture department.

    A high court in January ordered the freezing of all assets linked to the farm.

    Zuma and the three Gupta brothers he is mainly linked to – Ajay, Atul and Rajesh – deny any wrongdoing.

    Opposition party Democratic Alliance ( DA ) meanwhile demanded that the police extend their raid on the Gupta family to include government ministers linked to the corruption allegations.

    “The investigations and action simply cannot end [with the Guptas] and must continue to all those implicated, including key ministers,” DA member Zakhele Mbehle said in a statement.

    Mbehle demanded investigations into four ministers as well as ANC secretary general Ace Magushule.

    NAN

  • Zuma slams moves to force him out as ‘very unfair’

    Zuma slams moves to force him out as ‘very unfair’

    Zuma said in his first public remarks, a day after the ANC formally asked him to resign.

    During more than a week of negotiations with the ANC’s key decision-making body, Zuma said that “nobody provided the reasons, nobody has been able to provide me with what I have done.”

    The ANC had urged Zuma to resign due to a string of corruption allegations.

    Zuma denied any wrongdoing on Wednesday.

    “There is no problem. There has never been a problem,” he said in the televised remarks.

    Earlier in the day police had raided the home of a business family linked to the embattled leader.

    Zuma says the ruling ANC has not followed party procedures in trying to unseat him.

    Read Also:  Zuma to face no-confidence vote on Thursday – ANC

    The ANC wants parliament to vote on Thursday on a motion of no confidence if he does not resign on Wednesday.

    “I need to be furnished on what I’ve done,” Mr Zuma says. “What is this hurry?”
    Agents from the Hawks, an elite police investigative unit, earlier entered the compound of the Gupta family in an affluent neighbourhood of Johannesburg.

    Three people were arrested in operations at various addresses, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported.

    The family is suspected of using its connections to the president to influence Cabinet appointments and win state contracts, and has been a flashpoint for national anger over corruption in state enterprises during Mr Zuma’s tenure.

    Both the Guptas and Mr Zuma say they have done nothing wrong.

    ANC Secretary-General Ace Magashule makes a statement after the ruling party said scandal-tainted President Jacob Zuma must leave office .

    Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa is poised to replace Mr Zuma, who could face a motion of no confidence in parliament if he defies his party’s order to step down.

    Deputy President and ANC party president Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to take over from Jacob Zuma .

    As the Gupta-linked investigation proceeds, Mr Zuma could face corruption charges tied to an arms deal two decades ago.

    South Africa’s chief prosecutor is expected to make a decision on whether to prosecute Mr Zuma on the old charges, which were reinstated in 2017 after being thrown out in 2009.

    In another scandal, South Africa’s top court ruled in 2016 that Mr Zuma violated the constitution following an investigation of multimillion-dollar upgrades to his private home using state funds.

    The president paid back some of the money.

    NAN

  • Zuma asked to resign as South African President

    Zuma asked to resign as South African President

    The ANC has decided to sack Jacob Zuma as President of South Africa, a senior official said on Tuesday, after a marathon meeting to determine the fate of a leader whose scandal-plagued years in power darkened and divided Nelson Mandela’s ‘Rainbow Nation’.

    The decision by the ruling party’s national executive came in the early hours of the morning, after 13 hours of tense deliberations and one face-to-face meeting between Zuma and his presumed successor, deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa.

    Zuma has been living on borrowed time since Ramaphosa, a union leader once tipped as Mandela’s pick to take over the reins, was elected as head of the 106-year-old ANC in December, narrowly defeating Zuma’s ex-wife, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

    In spite of the damning decision to order Zuma’s “recall” – ANC-speak for ‘remove from office’ – domestic media have speculated that the 75-year-old might yet defy the party’s wishes, forcing it into the indignity of having to unseat him in parliament.

    Read Also: Zuma: ANC leaders to meet on Wednesday

    Shortly before midnight, the SABC state broadcaster said Zuma had been told in person by Ramaphosa that he had 48 hours to resign.

    A senior party source later told Reuters Zuma had made clear that he was going nowhere.

    “Ramaphosa went to speak with him,” the source said, adding that when Ramaphosa returned to the ANC meeting in a Pretoria hotel, the discussions were tense and difficult”.

    “We decided to recall Zuma. He hasn’t been told yet,” the source said.

    The ANC said it would hold a media briefing at 1000 GMT to reveal the results of the meeting.

    Zuma’s spokesman did not answer his mobile phone.

    On Friday his wife Tobeka Madiba-Zuma posted comments on Instagram suggesting Zuma, who has challenged and defied attempts by the ANC and courts to rein him in, was prepared to fight and believed he was the victim of a Western conspiracy.

    “He will finish what he started because he does not take orders beyond the Atlantic Ocean,” she said.

    South Africa’s economy, the most sophisticated on the continent, has stagnated under Zuma’s nine-year tenure, with banks and mining firms reluctant to invest because of policy uncertainty and rampant corruption.

  • ANC holds ‘fruitful’ talks with Zuma

    ANC holds ‘fruitful’ talks with Zuma

    South Africa’s governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), has postponed a top-level meeting that was expected to decide on President Jacob Zuma’s future.

    Instead the ANC released a statement saying it had held “fruitful and constructive discussions” with the President.

    The BBC reports that Mr. Zuma is under growing pressure from members of his own party to resign amid corruption allegations.

    Earlier on Tuesday, parliament took the extraordinary step of postponing Thursday’s state of the nation address.

    South Africa’s Times Live website quoted unnamed sources as saying Mr. Zuma was prepared to quit, if the right terms can be negotiated.

    The formal National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting has been set for February 17 and 18, the ANC’s party leader, Cyril Ramaphosa, said in a statement.

    The high-level group has the power to remove the President from office without his agreement.

    Opposition parties are demanding that a vote of no-confidence be held to remove him.

    Mr. Zuma, 75, was replaced as party leader by Mr. Ramaphosa, his 65-year-old deputy, in December. Mr. Ramaphosa is set to succeed him as President.

    Earlier on Tuesday, the Nelson Mandela Foundation urged Mr. Zuma to step down.

    South Africa had seen “systematic looting” under Mr. Zuma’s rule, and he “must go sooner rather than later,” the foundation said in a statement.

  • Zuma cabinet meeting not ‘special’, spokesman says

    Zuma cabinet meeting not ‘special’, spokesman says

    The Presidency said South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma was chairing routine cabinet committee meetings in Cape Town on Tuesday and not holding a “special cabinet meeting” as reported in local media.

    Bongani Ngqulunga, Zuma’s spokesman,  said a full cabinet meeting was scheduled for Wednesday.

    He dismissed speculation in domestic media the embattled president had called a meeting to discuss his future with his cabinet colleagues.

    The African National Congress ( ANC ) met on Monday to discuss Zuma’s future amid growing.

    Read also: Zuma: ANC leaders to meet on Wednesday

    pressure on the 75-year-old leader to step down as head of state over corruption allegations and a weakened economy.

    Zuma, in power since 2009, has been deserted by prominent allies since being replaced in December as ANC leader by Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s deputy president, who is now lobbying behind the scenes for him to step down as president too.

    Overnight talks with top ANC officials failed to persuade him to quit, and a group of Zuma loyalists said they would march on Monday on the party’s headquarters in downtown Johannesburg, Luthuli House, in support of the president.

    ANC officials said the party had summoned its National Working Committee (NWC) to meet at 1200 GMT at Luthuli House.

    The NWC handles the day-to-day running of the ANC, which has run South Africa since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

    It would need to call a meeting of the National Executive Committee to force Zuma to quit.

    Asked about the ongoing talks surrounding Zuma, ANC spokeswoman Khusela Diko said: “There is no crisis within the ANC, we are used to robust discussions.”

    The ANC’s top six most powerful officials met Zuma late on Sunday at his official residence in Pretoria but there was no announcement of the outcome.

    After the pro-Zuma group Black First Land First announced its march on Monday, a pro-Ramaphosa faction of the ANC said it would “defend” Luthuli House, raising the prospect of clashes between different camps within the party.

    The ANC said it respected the right of citizens to protest in a disciplined and peaceful manner.

    Opposition parties and some in the ANC want Zuma to go before his state of the nation address to parliament, scheduled for Thursday.

    Zuma has not said in public whether he will step down voluntarily. But he faces a new confidence-vote in parliament against his leadership on Feb. 22 filed by the opposition far-left Economic Freedom Fighters party (EFF).

    The EFF has asked the speaker of parliament, Baleka Mbete, to allow a secret ballot for the no-confidence vote, a decision which would increase the chances of Zuma losing the vote.

    Unlike in August when Zuma survived a no-confidence vote, a significant portion of the ANC now wants him gone.

    If he lost the vote, his entire cabinet would have to step down.

    Zuma will meet Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini at 1200 GMT on Monday at the king’s residence in Ulundi in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province, said Prince Thulani Zulu, a spokesman for the Zulu royal household.

    The spokesman declined to speculate on whether the king, a key ally of Zuma, who is also a Zulu, would add his voice to those urging the president to step down.

    Zuma’s spokesman Bongani Ngqulunga said the meeting with Zwelithini was “a longstanding courtesy meeting between the President and His Majesty which was initially meant to take place in January but was postponed due to diary challenges on both sides”.

    Zwelithini is the influential traditional head of South Africa’s biggest ethnic group, with around 10 million first-language Zulu speakers out of a total population of around 55 million, but he holds no role in government.

    “Zuma would listen to the Zulu king. Zuma is a traditionalist and has a power base in KwaZulu-Natal province,” said political analyst Ralph Mathekga.

    “The king is a bargainer, he could help Cyril (Ramaphosa) heal KwaZulu-Natal after Zuma goes.”

    NAN

  • Zuma: ANC leaders to meet on Wednesday

    Zuma: ANC leaders to meet on Wednesday

    South Africa’s ruling party has called a meeting of its top body for Wednesday, amid growing pressure on President Jacob Zuma to stand down.

    In a statement, the ANC said the meeting was called to discuss the “management of the transition” between the Zuma and Ramaphosa administrations.

    On Monday, senior politicians held an emergency meeting in Johannesburg to discuss Mr. Zuma’s future.

    The BBC reports that the President has resisted calls to quit over corruption allegations.

    Mr. Zuma, 75, was replaced as party leader in December, and his deputy and successor, Cyril Ramaphosa, 65, would step into the presidency if he (Zuma) was recalled by the ANC.

    An ANC spokeswoman said the removal of President Zuma was not on the agenda at Monday’s meeting.

    The President, in power since 2009, is due to make a state of the nation address on Thursday, and some in the party want Mr. Zuma to leave office ahead of that speech.