S.Africa’s under fire Zuma to address nation
Embattled South African President Jacob Zuma
addresses the nation Thursday against a background of
concerted efforts in the courts, parliament and on the
streets to throw him out of office.
A scandal over public money spent on his private
residence and damage done to the economy when he
fired two finance ministers within days are the major
factors fuelling the "Zuma must fall" protests.
Zuma's annual state of the nation address in parliament
comes just two days after the Constitutional Court heard
a crucial case accusing him of violating his oath to
uphold the constitution.
Two opposition parties took the case to court over
Zuma's initial refusal to obey a ruling by the national
ombudswoman that he repay some of the $24 million
lavished on his private home at Nkandla.
His own lawyers accepted in court that the case had
"traumatised the nation," and conceded that he needed to
obey.
But they urged the court not to be "inveigled into a
position of making some form of wide, condemnatory
order, which will be used effectively for... an
impeachment in parliament".
The court reserved judgement.
Radical opposition party the Economic Freedom Fighters
(EFF) pledged after the hearing that they would indeed
use an adverse ruling by the court to press for Zuma's
impeachment.
Any such attempt would likely fail in a parliament, where
Zuma's African National Congress (ANC) holds an
overwhelming majority.
- 'Delicate time' -
But critics hope the groundswell of discontent, expected
to result in losses for the ANC in municipal elections later
this year, could lead the party itself to oust Zuma as
president.
The EFF has also vowed to disrupt Zuma's address in
parliament if he fails to explain his sacking of the finance
ministers in December, which sent South Africa's rand
currency into free fall and hammered the stock market.
Similar tactics used by the EFF last year saw parliament
degenerate into chaos and led to lawmakers being
violently evicted.
Special precautions are in place this year in an attempt to
avoid a repeat performance at this evening's speech, due
at 7:00 pm (1700 GMT).
Security around parliament is expected to be particularly
tight, with several groups planning anti-Zuma
demonstrations on the streets in major cities, including
Cape Town.
The heightened tension comes amid social unrest over a
sharply slowing economy, high unemployment, grinding
poverty and a resurgence of public racial animosity.
Commentators have predicted that 2016 could be South
Africa's toughest year since the ANC came to power
under Nelson Mandela at the end of apartheid in 1994.
Even Zuma's lawyer Jeremy Gauntlett told the
Constitutional Court this week: "This is a delicate time in
a dangerous year."
addresses the nation Thursday against a background of
concerted efforts in the courts, parliament and on the
streets to throw him out of office.
A scandal over public money spent on his private
residence and damage done to the economy when he
fired two finance ministers within days are the major
factors fuelling the "Zuma must fall" protests.
Zuma's annual state of the nation address in parliament
comes just two days after the Constitutional Court heard
a crucial case accusing him of violating his oath to
uphold the constitution.
Two opposition parties took the case to court over
Zuma's initial refusal to obey a ruling by the national
ombudswoman that he repay some of the $24 million
lavished on his private home at Nkandla.
His own lawyers accepted in court that the case had
"traumatised the nation," and conceded that he needed to
obey.
But they urged the court not to be "inveigled into a
position of making some form of wide, condemnatory
order, which will be used effectively for... an
impeachment in parliament".
The court reserved judgement.
Radical opposition party the Economic Freedom Fighters
(EFF) pledged after the hearing that they would indeed
use an adverse ruling by the court to press for Zuma's
impeachment.
Any such attempt would likely fail in a parliament, where
Zuma's African National Congress (ANC) holds an
overwhelming majority.
- 'Delicate time' -
But critics hope the groundswell of discontent, expected
to result in losses for the ANC in municipal elections later
this year, could lead the party itself to oust Zuma as
president.
The EFF has also vowed to disrupt Zuma's address in
parliament if he fails to explain his sacking of the finance
ministers in December, which sent South Africa's rand
currency into free fall and hammered the stock market.
Similar tactics used by the EFF last year saw parliament
degenerate into chaos and led to lawmakers being
violently evicted.
Special precautions are in place this year in an attempt to
avoid a repeat performance at this evening's speech, due
at 7:00 pm (1700 GMT).
Security around parliament is expected to be particularly
tight, with several groups planning anti-Zuma
demonstrations on the streets in major cities, including
Cape Town.
The heightened tension comes amid social unrest over a
sharply slowing economy, high unemployment, grinding
poverty and a resurgence of public racial animosity.
Commentators have predicted that 2016 could be South
Africa's toughest year since the ANC came to power
under Nelson Mandela at the end of apartheid in 1994.
Even Zuma's lawyer Jeremy Gauntlett told the
Constitutional Court this week: "This is a delicate time in
a dangerous year."
