Zuma will be out this year, says top opponent Julius Malema
Tuesday January 09 2018
South African President and outgoing President of the African National Congress (ANC) Jacob Zuma. FILE PHOTO | AFP
South African opposition leader Julius Malema of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has predicted that President Jacob Zuma will be out of office, come end of 2018.
President Zuma is winding up his second term of office as South Africa’s head of state, but there have been growing calls from within the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and outside for his party’s new leadership to recall him.
In a radio interview with Energy FM on Monday, Mr Malema claimed there were already talks within the party to have the South African leader recalled.
Mr Malema also said President Zuma would step down on condition that he and his family are granted immunity from state capture allegations.
“I don't think that the ANC will keep Zuma until the end of this year. There are talks already happening and his condition is that he must be given immunity and his family,” Mr Malema said.
Zuma immunity
He added that if the ANC decided to give President Zuma immunity they would take the matter to court.
“Our law doesn't recognise giving people immunity. We will charge him and he will be arrested,” he said.
Mr Malema believes the new ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa will have to start his fight in his top six. He believes the top six is made up President Zuma’s allies.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly's subcommittee on review of rules will meet on Wednesday and Thursday to discuss the draft procedure for removing a president.
This comes after the Constitutional Court ruled on December 29, 2017, that the National Assembly has failed to put in place proper rules regulating the procedure for section 89(1) of the Constitution, which deals with the impeachment of a president.
In March 2016, the same court ruled that President Zuma breached his constitutional duties in the way he dealt with the Public Protector’s remedial action over the use of taxpayers' money in paying for upgrades to his private home.
Zuma impeachment
In the latest judgment, the highest court in the land gave Parliament 120 days to decide what the rules of impeachment against a head of state are and another 120 days thereafter, to act on those rules against the president.
Once the draft procedure is finalised by the subcommittee it will have to be adopted by the National Assembly as part of its rules.
But, even if Parliament finds that President Zuma violated the constitution, and impeachment proceedings are instituted, a two-thirds vote by MPs is required to remove him.