Tug of war over JZ’s ‘cabinet’

Jacob Zuma’s camp in KwaZulu-Natal has been hit by ructions as key backers of the ANC’s deputy president jostle for positions in any future Zuma government.

Political ambitions came to the fore last month after the Durban regional leadership succeeded in forcing eThekwini municipality to rename the planned R1,6-billion King Senzangakhona soccer stadium after the late ANC stalwart Moses Mabhida.

This is widely seen as a move by eThekwini ANC chair Bheki Cele — who has his eye on the KwaZulu-Natal premiership — to curry favour with Zuma, who wants a prominent structure named in the memory of Mabhida, his mentor.

The regional leadership has also been hatching a plan to force S’bu Ndebele’s arch-rival, Zweli Mkhize, not to stand for the chairmanship at the next provincial conference in 2008, and for Cele to contest the position.

A member of the ANC provincial executive committee said: ‘Bheki thinks his election as provincial chair will be a one-way ticket to being elected KwaZulu-Natal premier.” To date, Mkhize has been the heir apparent to Ndebele’s throne.

A provincial minister said: ‘I can tell you with authority that Bheki [Cele] and John Mchunu [eThekwini regional secretary] are planning to push Zweli [Mkhize] not to stand for the provincial chairmanship, because Zweli is expected to be appointed to the national Cabinet as health minister under a Zuma presidency.”

Four sources in and outside the Zuma camp also told the Mail & Guardian that the pro-Zuma eThekwini regional leaders intend pro­p­osing that Zuma reward provincial secretary Senzo Mchunu with the post of national education minister should he become president.

One source close to Zuma said he was ‘aware of these plans, but I dismissed them as urban myths until I realised that they were on everyone’s lips”.

He was quick to point out, however, that Zuma was not aware of the expectations of his key backers.

The provincial office bearer said the thinking in Cele’s faction was that ‘Zweli did a sterling job as provincial health minister and would be well placed to turn the national health department around, as he has the charisma to bring all stakeholders on board in tackling health challenges like HIV and Aids.

‘Senzo was once a school principal and has been the ANC spokesperson on education in the province. He also chairs the provincial legislature’s education committee.”

The source said John Mchunu also seemed to be pushing for the post of provincial secretary, arguing that the eThekwini region is the most active in the province and would be footing the lion’s share of the bill for the Zuma campaign.

The regional leadership was also instrumental in starting a pro-Zuma rebellion at the last ANC national general congress, after Zuma’s axing as the country’s deputy president.

The resolution on the renaming of the King Senzangakhona stadium, proposed by the ANC caucus in the Durban municipality, is expected to be approved, as the party has more than a two-thirds majority.

A member of the party’s provincial executive committee said: ‘At first they wanted King Shaka Airport to be named after Mabhida because the current name was suggested by Ndebele. This was politically naïve, because the name was originally proposed by Msholozi [Zuma] himself while still a provincial minister.

‘Ndebele resisted that bid, but agreed that they could propose a change of name for the planned 2010 soccer stadium.”

Regional secretary Mchunu this week accused the media of ‘obfuscating and working in cahoots” with people who wanted to undermine the ANC leadership in KwaZulu-Natal.

‘I know nothing of claims that I want to be a provincial secretary. At no point did we ever discuss Bheki standing for the chairpersonship — that would be foreign to ANC culture.”

Activists who support Ndebele predicted that the Zuma camp would fail in its bid to unseat him, pointing out that it had failed in the past, with Zuma’s backing.

‘These people are known to be divisive. Zuma himself came back here in 1998 trying to impose Zweli Mkhize after he [Zuma] was elected deputy president in Mafikeng. He was rejected by the delegates and has never accepted the chairpersonship of S’bu Ndebele.

‘After that, in 2002, they went out of their way to bring in Zweli as chairperson, but failed again. Zuma was again the force behind that campaign.

‘For the first time, in 2005, Zweli did not contest for the chairpersonship because the seniors had forced him and Ndebele to resolve their differences.”