‘David Mabuza won’t join uMkhonto weSizwe’

The chance of former president Jacob Zuma and former deputy president David Mabuza uniting against the ANC under the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party in Mpumalanga are slim – but even if they could join forces, that would pose no threat to the ruling party which dominates the province.

Zuma no match for the ANC in Mpumalanga

This is according to political analyst Goodenough Mashego, who said Zuma may still be liked by some in Mpumalanga, but he is no match for the ANC, which Mpumalanga people are still loyal to, rather than an individual.

Instead of affecting the ANC in any bad way, a combination of Zuma and Mabuza would destroy the two men rather than the ANC.

Mpumalanga and Limpopo ANC strongholds

Another analyst, Prof Dirk Kotzé, said Mpumalanga and Limpopo were ANC strongholds and Zuma would struggle to win those provinces from the ANC.

“The main reason for him to campaign in Mpumalanga was to register his presence in the province to counter the ANC, which is celebrating its anniversary in [the province],” he said.

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“Zuma believes that the people who are pro-ANC in the province are actually pro-himself.”

Mashego said Zuma’s bid to target Mpumalanga to make it one of MK’s support bases, was bound to fail because it’s the ANC that people loved rather than Zuma.

“Now that he has formed his own party, many ANC supporters will stay away from him,” he said.

Zuma will soon take his political charm offensive to the Eastern Cape

Zuma kicked off his election campaign in KwaZulu-Natal last week followed by Mpumalanga and will soon take his political charm offensive to the Eastern Cape.

“Yes, Zuma is loved in Mpumalanga, but the people love ANC more than him,” said Mashego.

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“As ANC provincial chair Mandla Ndlovu said, Zuma not having left the ANC but coming to Mpumalanga created a loyalty quandary.

“It’s the ambiguity Zuma rides, but given his remarks against the ANC over the weekend, one is tempted to say he would be better fully outside than being an agent provocateur inside the ANC.”

Responding to rumours that Zuma could combine forces with his former ally, Mabuza, Mashego said the chances of him joining the MK party were remote.

Mabuza’s influence in Mpumalanga had waned

He said Mabuza’s influence in Mpumalanga had waned since he left the province to become deputy president of the ANC and SA.

Mashego said if Zuma hoped to lure Mabuza to his side in his endeavour to win Mpumalanga, he was in for a huge disappointment because Mabuza was still loyal to the ANC despite being sidelined.

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He would rather stay in the ANC – which is rumoured to be planning to redeploy him as a foreign ambassador – rather than try to find a new political home in MK. Even if Mabuza were to link up with Zuma and join MK, which was unlikely, that posed no danger to the ANC.

“DD [Mabuza] is a spent force, he commands no region nor sub-region. He’ll be safer joining the EFF than this new outfit [MK] whose members don’t need to leave their homes,” said Mashego.

“The MK party is not a home DD will find comfort in; it’s a lodge that I don’t see him openly associating with.”

Doubts that Mabuza would join MK

Kotzé said although he could not dismiss it completely, there were doubts that Mabuza would join MK because it was bound to become a small opposition party with less resources.

“It would be difficult to be a representative of this party, politics is no longer about principles and ideas but about opportunities,” he said.

“If I support leader X, I have to ask ‘will this person and his party give me a job or a contract?’ If you are a small party you cannot do that, that’s an uphill struggle of these smaller parties.”

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