President Jacob Zuma President Jacob Zuma
Nomaswazi Nkosi, Thabiso Thakali, Louise Flanagan, Luyolo Mkentane and Baldwin Ndaba
OPPOSITION parties have called for President Jacob Zuma’s head after the 11 judges of the Constitutional Court found he had violated his oath of office.
The EFF and DA led the charge, stating if the ANC failed to recall Zuma they would seek his impeachment.
“Zuma is no longer the president of SA. That judgment has serious implications that he can no longer hold that office. We are not going to sit back and allow the continuation of violation of the constitution by Parliament,” said Malema, whose party took the Nkandla scandal to the Concourt.
DA leader Mmusi Maimane said he had written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, about a notice of motion resolving to remove Zuma.
Meanwhile, UDM leader Bantu Holomisa was more blunt:
“I advised him on an exit strategy. He did not listen. Zuma messed up.”
Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, of the Anglican Church, said: “I hope the judgment finding will give public servants and others new courage to speak out, and generate not just a wave but a tsunami of truth-telling. Today is a great day for constitutional democracy in South Africa.”
Public Protector advocate Thuli Madonsela said she still had another battle on her hands and said it was not her job to determine whether Zuma was fit for office.
“My job was to protect the public by determining if somebody’s conduct was improper and how that should be fixed. That is what I did and now the Constitutional Court has confirmed that I have done my job. The rest of the job belongs to someone else,” she said.
And instead of celebrating, Madonsela said she would only be happy if the Hawks and National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) stopped investigating her. “I would celebrate if the NPA and the Hawks could at least by tonight (yesterday) send me a report saying they had stopped investigating me,” Madonsela said.
“You do know that I am being investigated, with the potential of being prosecuted, for holding this view that my powers are binding? I am required to deal with that.
“They have involved a very senior team, the Hawks, which is supposed to investigate organised crime, to look into what I said in court. Therefore I hope they will now recognise that I am not a criminal; I am a public protector.”
However, both the NPA and Hawks categorically denied that they were involved in any such investigation. “We are denying those allegations. As you would know, we are not an investigative organ,” said NPA spokesperson Luvuyo Mfaku.
Hawks spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi said: “We don’t know about any investigation. When we heard about it, it came as a shock to us.”
Madonsela reiterated that her findings on Nkandla were binding and that Zuma was liable for part of the public money used to upgrade his home, as recommended in her Secure in Comfort report.