The former South African president Jacob Zuma has been expelled from the ruling African National Congress (ANC) following his endorsement of a rival party in the parliamentary elections held in May. These elections resulted in the ANC losing its majority for the first time since the end of apartheid. The party announced this decision on Monday.
“Zuma has actively undermined the integrity of the ANC and has sought to overthrow the ANC’s leadership while claiming he had not violated his membership,” stated ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula to the press. “This behavior is incompatible with the spirit of organizational discipline and the ANC’s statutes.”
Zuma, who previously served as the leader of the ANC, was suspended from the party in January after he expressed his support for the new party uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) during the general elections. He later became the leader and face of MK. MK performed better than expected in the elections, winning approximately 15 percent of the vote, which significantly contributed to the ANC’s loss of majority.
In the elections, the ANC garnered 40.18 percent of the votes, a decline from 57.50 percent in 2019, which forced them into a coalition government for the first time since taking power at the end of white minority rule in 1994. MK is now the official opposition.
In response to media reports about Zuma’s expulsion, MK issued a statement earlier on Monday where they criticized the process and condemned the “grave injustices” against Zuma. “President Zuma will engage his legal team to quickly determine the course of action,” they stated.
According to the ANC, Zuma has 21 days to appeal the decision. The former president, whose nine-year term from 2009 was marked by corruption scandals and sluggish economic growth, has been at odds with the ANC’s leadership since he was forced to resign as party leader in 2018. He has repeatedly launched sharp attacks against his successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.