Duduzane Zuma says the MK party remains stable and continues to enjoy voter confidence.
Duduzane Zuma poses for a photograph following an interview at Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, 17 May 2023. Picture: Michel Bega/The Citizen
The first deputy president of the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party says his party will not tolerate “incompetence” despite concerns about instability within the party.
This comes after the party was criticised for constantly making changes to its national leadership structures. The party has not held an elective conference, leaving most appointments to its founder, Jacob Zuma.
Duduzane was speaking in the Eastern Cape on Monday, where the top leaders of his party, including his father, visited the AmaMpodomise royal kingdom.
“We are not going to tolerate incompetence; we are not going to tolerate people who are not going to get us to a point where we are delivering services to our people. So when we speak about the changes, it’s less turmoil, less dissidence in the party. It’s just us basically saying if you are not up to the task, please remember, and that goes for all rank and file; we want the best of the best for this party,” he told Newzroom Afrika.
MK party ‘changes speak for themselves’
At the same time, Duduzane believes the party’s constant hiring and firing of leaders has not negatively affected it.
“The changes speak for themselves, and this is what makes more people engage and have more confidence in our party because what we are saying is for those who are not able, those who are not capable or willing to stand up to the task, the next better man will be welcomed,” he said.
Questions over Duduzane’s political experience
Despite Duduzane’s comments, political analyst Ntsikelelo Breakfast has questioned his capabilities of leading the MK party as its first deputy president.
“The guy speaks well; he can speak and express himself, but politics is a different kettle of fish. To have an understanding of politics takes a long time; it takes assimilation or internalisation of class consciousness. I have never heard him expressing a particular view coherently that is political in nature,” he told The Citizen in a recent interview.
Breakfast also believes that the constant leadership and structural changes in the MK party will affect the party at the polls later this year.
“The appointment of Zuma’s son is the last straw because it demonstrates that this is a family business,” he said.
