Jacob Zuma will be the African National Congress’ deputy president in name only until his rape trial is over, the party said on Wednesday following Zuma’s decision to suspend himself from leadership structures.
”Only the (party’s) national conference can remove him from that office,” said secretary-general Kgalema Motlanthe. ”The effect of that suspension means that he will not pronounce or act as deputy president for the duration of the trial.”
Zuma made the move after he was released on R20 000 bail on Tuesday after being charged for a second time this year — this year with the alleged rape of a 31-year-old female friend at his Forest Town, Johannesburg home.
That trial will begin on February 13.
In July Zuma will proceed to Durban to face a corruption trial.
At a packed Johannesburg press conference, Motlanthe said the party welcomed Zuma’s decision — and took rape seriously.
After an extended national working committee meeting on Tuesday Zuma’s decision was accepted.
Following consultation with Zuma it was established that he would not fulfil any of the deputy president’s duties during the trial.
Because he could not be removed from office or a substitute appointed without a national conference, according to its constitution, party president Thabo Mbeki would take over his duties. If he was not available, the tasks then fall to Motlanthe, Motlanthe’s deputy Sankie Mthembi-Mahanyele, or the party’s treasurer-general, Mendi Msimang.
The party does not pay Zuma a salary as deputy president.
The decision would be conveyed to all party structures, including the Youth League and the Women’s League, as well as its alliance partners the Congress of SA Trade Unions and the SA Communist Party at an extraordinary national executive committee meeting.
That meeting was unlikely to change the stance announced on Wednesday.
This would have to take place before December 15 when everyone left for holidays, Motlanthe said.
”The ANC has said it will support the deputy president of the ANC as he faces this trial of corruption. With regards to the current rape charge and allegations, the ANC will provide support for the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator.”
Zuma was ”relieved of his position as the country’s deputy president in June, ahead of being formally indicted on corruption charges.
The opposition Democratic Alliance said that by failing to suspend Zuma from the deputy presidency, the ANC had lost its moral compass.
”By failing to suspend Jacob Zuma from its second highest office it has fudged the issue and sent out a profoundly negative — and deeply hypocritical — signal.
”It obviously does not regard allegations of woman abuse and financial fraud in a substantial and serious light.”
It continued, ”There is a huge difference between the legal presumption of innocence, to which, of course, Mr Zuma is entitled, and the political duty to act in a morally defensible and ethically justifiable manner.”
The African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) said the ANC should have taken a harder line on Zuma by formally suspended him from his duties and title as ANC deputy president.
”Although the ACDP believes in the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, we however, believe that the decision not to formally suspend Zuma as ANC deputy president flies in the face of the ANC governments’ commitment to fight violence against women and children, as well as corruption,” the party said.
The SA Communist Party said the measures the ANC took were ”appropriate”.
Youth league will not mobilise
The ANC Youth League will not spend money or mobilise support for Jacob Zuma during his rape trial, the SABC reported on Wednesday.
ANCYL president Fikile Mbalula said although the league did mobilise support for Zuma at his corruption hearing, the context of the two cases was different.
The league said while it sympathised with the alleged victim, Zuma’s right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty must be respected.
Mbalula said law enforcement agencies — the police in particular — had conducted themselves in a disciplined way by ”refusing to bow to media pressure”.
ANCYL spokesman Zizi Kodwa said the league would follow the rape trial with keen interest.
”We view rape as a very serious allegation and we will follow the trial with keen interest,” Kodwa said.
”On the corruption trial we are still 100 percent behind him.”
Zuma’s was charged on Tuesday with raping a 31-year-old woman. The trial will start in the Johannesburg High Court on February 13. His corruption trial starts in the Durban High Court on July 31. – Sapa