Zuma hints he will back ex-wife to succeed him as ANC leader

And Agencies

JOHANNESBURG, Thursday

South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has given the strongest hint that he will back his ex-wife, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, to succeed him, after saying the African National Congress (ANC) is ready for a female president.

The succession debate in the southern African country is getting hotter ahead of the party’s elective conference to be held later in the year.

Outgoing African Union Commission chairperson, Dr Dlamini-Zuma, is the only woman tipped as one of the front-runners for the ANC and country’s presidency.

President Zuma said the discussion on whether a woman can take over was no longer a sticking point for the party.

“It is no longer a discussion in the ANC whether a women can take a high leadership position or not. This discussion has been had before and the party agreed that anyone who is seen to have the qualities to lead the movement‚ there won’t be any problem for that person to do so. The ANC is ready for that‚ in fact the party has been ready for some time‚“ Mr Zuma said.

He said women were already holding key government positions and were doing extremely well.

He, however, said it would depend on the integrity possessed by the candidate and whether members see her fit for the position.

“We no longer look at whether the person is a woman or man. This is our belief in the ANC,” he said.

The South African leader chided some structures of the ANC for prematurely announcing their preferred candidates.

“People rush to give names for leadership…even leaders also just abruptly indicate their availability for leadership. They just say openly‚ ‘I don’t have any problem leading.’ People then start talking about the leadership race‚“ he said.

WAS AVAILABLE

His deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa, seen as Dr Dlamini-Zuma’s strongest challenger, in December made it clear he was available to lead. President Zuma also said he was not vying for a third term.

“I am finishing a second term. There are many leaders in the ANC who must get an opportunity to lead… Even in the past‚ when the previous president wanted a third term‚ I was one of those who were not supporting that move. I cannot reject the move by another president and then do it myself,” he said.

Dr Dlamini-Zuma, 67, has not declared her candidacy, but the ANC women’s league President Zuma, 74, who has been engulfed by corruption scandals and poor economic data since he came to power in 2009, completes the maximum two terms in office as national president in 2019.

In August, the ANC, which came to power in 1994 under Nelson Mandela after the end of apartheid, recorded its worst-ever election results at local polls.

Among Zuma’s other possible successors are deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

Mr Zuma survived an attempt by ANC rivals to oust him in November, shrugging off criticism of his conduct by the official anti-graft watchdog and the Constitutional Court.

Dr Dlamini-Zuma is not seeking a second mandate at the African Union, a move that has increased speculation that she has ambitions to succeed her ex-husband at the ANC.

She has held a string of ministerial posts under South African presidents, including the foreign affairs and home minister portfolios.

Her four years at the head of the AU have given her an international profile which has further increased her status as an ANC heavyweight.