BLF’s Andile Mngxitama says Nkandla meeting with Zuma was ‘detailed, very respectful’

Black First Land First (BLF) leader Andile Mngxitama says his party held detailed and very respectful discussions with former president Jacob Zuma on Saturday during their “tea’’ meeting in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal.

BLF members were the latest group to visit Zuma at his homestead amid his standoff with the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture.

The former statesman last month disobeyed a Constitutional Court order compelling him to appear before the commission, and he now faces a two-year jail term for contempt of court.

ALSO READ: Hlaudi Motsoeneng visits Zuma for Nkandla ‘tea’ meeting

Mngxitama said they went to Nkandla to express their full support for Zuma’s decision and black leaders he claims have been at the receiving end of constant attacks by “white capital”.

“It was a very detailed meeting, a very respectful meeting and we were able to hear from him exactly what his reasons for not going to the commission are. And we agree with those reasons and we said he was right,” Mngxitama told SABC News on Sunday morning.

He said Zuma was not refusing to appear before the commission but simply wanted Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo to recuse himself from hearing his testimony.

Justice Zondo dismissed the former president’s application for recusal in November last year after he found that Zuma failed to meet the test for reasonable apprehension of bias.

Mngxitama said: “We are very concerned that some people are trying to say to president Zuma he should go to the commission when they can see that he is not refusing to go to the commission because he is saying there must be the recusal of judge Zondo. There is no way that president Zuma can get justice under him.

“It is a very simple matter; remove Zondo [and] allow president Zuma to appear before the commission… this trampling on his rights insults the commitment that he has made, serving 10 years on Robben Island fighting for the freedom, that today has been denied to him and many other black leaders.”

ALSO READ: Zandile Gumede also wants to have a Nkandla ‘tea meeting’ with Zuma

The BLF leader said they were concerned about the attacks on black leaders like Western Cape judge president John Hlophe, Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng, and Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.

“Even spiritual leaders like [Shepherd] Bushiri,” he said.

“We see that white capital when there is a black leader who is not captured, they come for you. With president Zuma, we believe that it is even more blatant. We want to say we stand with president Zuma but we also wanted to hear from him about what is happening and how to move forward.”

Zuma has hosted several guests to his home in recent weeks including EFF leader Julius Malema, Police Minister Bheki Cele,  and ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte as well as former SABC chief operating officer, Hlaudi Motsoeneng.

BLF visit is to express solidarity with @PresJGZuma in the face of the attacks by WMC and some enemy agents. They spoke serious political analysis of SA.
A clear declaration of support by BLF for @PresJGZuma to continue to defy The Commission if Zondo does not recuse himself pic.twitter.com/xWIQnLRHB5

— Dudu Zuma-Sambudla (@DZumaSambudla) March 6, 2021

Thank you Nxamalala.

The marching orders are clear!!! pic.twitter.com/p0F3PC6jn7

— BLF2020 (@blf2020) March 6, 2021

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