Zuma the unifier or Zuma the divider?
Man of the people – First let us first look at Zuma the unifier. Tribal leaders and traditionalists see reflections of their ideologies in him but he also has a huge following among the working poor. COSATU and the South African Communist Party were his principal backers in the fight for the ANC presidency, and SACP leader Blade Nzimande’s inclusion in the cabinet is a reward for that loyalty.
However, Zuma has also been reassuring towards big business, insisting he will continue with growth-orientated economic policies. He has deftly managed this contradiction, but won’t be able to do so for long. The retention of veteran Finance Minister Trevor Manuel in the important new portfolio of the National Planning Commission gives a sign of continuity rather than change. Being within the office of the President will give Manuel unique influence over policy making. His replacement in Finance, Pravin Gordhan who moves from the SA Revenue Service, also shows a preference for fiscal prudence.
In addition, JZ has succeeded in reaching out to Afrikaners in a meaningful way, elevating Freedom Front Plus leader Pieter Mulder to Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and even braaing with Steve Hofmeyr, nogal. Many Afrikaners may not have voted for him, but Zuma recognises their importance as a constituency.
A charismatic populist, ‘Comrade JZ’ frequently dons traditional garb and sings the struggle songs of yesteryear. This behaviour often raises eyebrows among Western observers, but for millions of poor and disadvantaged people in South Africa he is considered the custodian of their aspirations Р particularly those who were left out of Thabo Mbeki’s ‘neo-liberal’ experiment.
Zuma’s unpretentious style is a welcome change from the detached manner of his predecessor. If our political system is to have any lasting durability, all groups need to feel they are listened to and respected. Now that Zuma is head of state, hopefully the poor masses’ reverence for him will give them the confidence that they too have a stake in the new South Africa.
Nkosi Zuma
Zuma is South Africa’s first Zulu president and arguably the most powerful Zulu since King Shaka himself. This is significant because both his predecessors, Thabo Mbeki and Nelson Mandela, were isiXhosa speakers and there was a perception of a growing ‘Xhosa Nostra’ in the ANC.
Zuma’s rise puts this perception to bed, and fears that his cultural leanings have made the ANC more tribal are surely misplaced. His success shows the multi-faceted character of the organisation Р a broad church that shuns ethnic divisions. Despite Zulus being numerically superior in the country, it is unlikely the ANC will now or in future be an exclusively Zulu party, even with Zuma as its leader. If the ANC were to indulge in the kind of sectarianism that has befallen so many African nations (like the horrific clashes in Kenya over a year ago), it would surely fall apart.
Embracing his cultural roots has also enabled JZ to capture the hearts of many former Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) voters. It also helped the ANC to offset some of the losses suffered by the nominal success of COPE.
Moreover, by winning over a million new votes in KwaZulu-Natal, Zuma has effectively neutralised one of the ANC’s great rivals in a region that in the 1980s and 1990s was the setting for intense political violence. During these years, and later in peace talks in Burundi, Zuma played a key role in mediating conflict. He will have to bring these considerable negotiating powers to the presidency if he wishes to unite a fractured and quarrelsome South Africa.
The limits of leadership
ANC leaders are fond of downplaying their personal views as irrelevant Р arguing that it is the movement that decides policy, and not they as individuals. But obviously the thoughts of a President imprint themselves on their administration and we need to ask the new incumbent whether his ideas will be consistent with the liberal democratic tenants of the South African constitution. Here is where Zuma is the divider and where his past is more troubling.
The President’s attitudes towards women in the past have been highly questionable, specifically the notorious comments made during his rape trial in 2006. Recall that although he was exonerated for the crime, Zuma alleged ‘Khwezi’ Р the HIV positive woman he was accused of raping Р was inviting sex because of the way she wore her kanga. During the trial, Khwezi was harassed and her life threatened and she is now effectively a political exile living in Holland. During this period Zuma showed his crucial weakness: an unwillingness or an inability to reign in his supporters when they got out of hand.
Many gender activists have also expressed strong reservations about his homophobia and polygamy. JZ’s response is that at least he is open about his love life, (unlike some other presidents) and he apologised for the anti-gay slurs.
However, with his patriarchal attitudes also come similarly right-wing views on revisiting the death penalty (despite a Constitutional Court ruling against it) as well as abortion. These are hard-fought-for liberties and to reverse them would seriously harm South Africa’s standing as a defender of human rights. The former editor of the Mail & Guardian, Ferial Haffajee, says Zuma is a conservative dressed up as a radical. She may very well be right.
You scratch my back…
A big worry for the emerging democracy is whether Jacob Zuma will be able to effectively address corruption in the ranks of the ANC. Zuma’s close relationship with convicted fraudster Shabir Shaik, and the latter’s release from prison created a perception of official tolerance of graft. When the likes of Tony Yengeni and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela are lauded by their comrades and elevated to important national positions, this sends a message. When Zuma himself has his case dropped by the National Prosecutor Authority after its Director, Mokotedi Mpshe seemingly buckled under political pressure, one wonders how the average Joe can respect the rule of law if his leaders don’t do so themselves.
Certainly South Africa is not the only country to suffer from corruption, as is visible in Britain, where the MP expenses scandal has rocked Gordon Brown’s Labour government. But South Africa can ill-afford to squander its precious resources whilst healthcare and education are in such dire need of attention.
If the ANC continues with its mentality of ‘one set of rules for us, another set for everybody else’, it will perpetuate what TAC leader Zachie Achmat has called a pattern of ‘executive lawlessness’. It is up to President Zuma to make sure this doesn’t happen, but does he have the will to do so?
The ANC’s appetite for untrammelled power has meant that preserving the institutions of democracy the courts, the security forces, the public broadcaster – has often come second to the interests of the party. The deployment of cadres to strategic positions meant that when factional infighting gripped the ruling party the independence and legitimacy of the state apparatus suffered as a result. This needs to end.
A long, hard slog
Expectations are high and a difficult five years lie ahead for Msholozi. The global economy is in tatters; the fabric of South African society is frayed. It will take enormous sacrifice and discipline for Zuma and his party to rise to these challenges. JZ may yet surprise us all, but he will need to work very hard to prove his detractors wrong.
