Even Obama slams the wasted JZ years

The “incompetence and deep-rooted corruption” under the ANC’s watch has not escaped former US president Barack Obama.

Obama, who served as president from 2009 to 2017, revealed his disappointment in the ruling party under former president Jacob Zuma in his new book, A Promised Land, released this week.

Obama said: “In subsequent meetings, Zuma struck me as amiable enough. He spoke eloquently of the need for fair trade, human development, infrastructure and more equitable distributions of wealth and opportunity on the African continent.”

However, he added: “By all accounts though, much of the goodwill built up by Nelson Mandela’s heroic struggle was being squandered by corruption and incompetence under the ANC leadership, leaving vast swathes of the country’s black population still mired in poverty and despair.”

In sharp contrast, Obama said “Madiba had been a role model” to him, while Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s joyful spirit impressed him. “Along with [Abraham] Lincoln, [Martin Luther] King and [Mahatma] Gandhi, Mandela had profoundly influenced my thinking”.

The wasted nine years is clearly there for all to see. Yet, here we are, still waiting for those involved in state capture to be held accountable. It’s nonsensical.

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