Former African National Congress (ANC) stalwart and veteran, Tokyo Sexwale, has suggested that Paul Mashatile would be a suitable candidate for the next president of South Africa.
South Africa’s constitution states a President may not serve for more than two terms, and President Cyril Ramaphosa is currently in the midst of his second term as president after he took over as acting President from Jacob Zuma in 2018.
Paul is the current Deputy President, and Tokyo revealed in an interview with Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh that Mashatile has already shown signs that he would be a fitting candidate to serve as South African president following the next general elections in 2029.
“I said the president is in the departure lounge. His suitcases are being packed every day. Mashatile is going to arrive. Will he be the president? I wish he would be. You know why? Because I saw what we did at Polokwane,” Sexwale said.
“It’s not nice that each time since Polokwane, every president must leave like a dog, show him the door. This is the African National Congress of Nelson Mandela who gave us this organisation at Mafikeng. But, warned us, be careful. Read his closing remarks when he pointed fingers at leaders,” Tokyo said.
Tokyo said he did not want to see Ramaphosa driven out of office as it would not set a good precedent for the country, saying that a trend cannot be stated that a President should be “kicked out” of office.
“I don’t want a repetition; this trend of in South Africa a president is …’ kick him out’. So, if that happens, it just juxtaposes everything. Therefore, we are not learning from history. This bloodletting in the ANC must come to an end,” he said.
He said it was important for South Africans to manage presidential transitions properly. He also explained why he was such a staunch supporter of Paul.
“I hope it is [Mashtile] because I know him. I’ve worked with him, we created Gauteng with him. These bullet trains are Paul Mashatile. The Gautrain is him, and many other things he did under my leadership,” he said.
Tokyo said that when it’s time to vote, he will cast his ballot for Paul.
“So, if there is a vote, I’ll put my vote. He can be defeated, but one of the defeated votes will be mine,” he said.
First published by African Insider
Compiled by Matthew Petersen
