By Doreen Mokgolo
- Jacob Zuma has taken President Cyril Ramaphosa and the ANC to the High Court to overturn his expulsion from the ANC after 65 years.
- MK Party says the move is about black unity and calls the ANC leadership “sell-outs” for forming a coalition with the Democratic Alliance.
Jacob Zuma is not giving up on the ANC just yet. The MK Party leader has taken his fight to the High Court after the African National Congress expelled him in July.
Zuma wants the court to overturn the ANC’s decision and allow him to hold dual membership of both the ANC and the MK Party.
The ANC’s disciplinary committee expelled the former president after months of clashes over his loyalty to the MK Party, which he now leads.
The MK Party’s national spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, said Zuma’s court application shows his commitment to what he calls the “real ANC”, the party of former leaders like Albert Luthuli, Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela.
He said: “Zuma’s membership cannot be erased by sell-outs and Democratic Alliance puppets like Ramaphosa and [ANC secretary-general Fikile] Mbalula.”
The MK Party’s constitution normally bans members from joining other political parties, but allows for dual membership in “highly exceptional” cases if approved by party leaders.
Ndhlela said Zuma’s application was deliberately filed on 26 June, Freedom Charter Day, to remind people of the ANC’s failure to live up to its promises.
He slammed the ANC’s coalition deal with the Democratic Alliance and Freedom Front Plus as a betrayal of black South Africans.
“A win in court will bring us closer to the unity needed in the fight for land and freedom,” Ndhlela said.
Pictured above: Jacob Zuma.
Image source: Doreen Mokgolo
