Zuma to face new vote of no confidence as top official of ruling party says he should resign

In a fresh attempt to kick out President Jacob Zuma, 75, the embattled leader is gearing up for another no-confidence vote this month as splits within his own party threatens to undo him.

Ever since he was replaced as leader of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party by Cyril Ramaphosa, the country’s deputy president, Zuma has been in a weakened position as he is battling a string of corruption allegations.

Ramaphosa, 65, has been lobbying the ANC’s national executive to force Zuma to resign even as the president is expected to meet the ANC’s six most powerful officials this weekend, but the agenda of the meeting has not been disclosed.

Read also: South Africa’s deputy president mounts pressure on prosecutors to hasten Zuma’s probe

In a related development, a senior ruling African National Congress official has also called for Zuma to step down amid a slew of corruption charges.

“There should be a change of guard. You can’t have two centres of power. The best possible way is if the state president exits,” ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile told CNBC Africa late on Friday.

“How do you do it? …. Go to him and say ‘look we’re not booting you out but we think we can work better this way’,” he said. There was no immediate comment from an ANC spokeswoman.

Reports say Deputy President Ramaphosa is in pole position to win an election next year and many in the party want Zuma out so that Ramaphosa can embark on his anti-corruption agenda.

 

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