Zimpapers Logo

Jacob Zuma

CAPE TOWN. — The Democratic Alliance’s motion calling for early elections will be debated in South Africa’s National Assembly on Tuesday, September 5.

This was announced by the programming whip, ANC MP Fezile Bhengu, at the National Assembly’s programming committee meeting yesterday morning.

The DA announced the motion on August 9, the day after an opposition motion of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma failed to pass, but caused bitter political fallout in the ruling party by drawing the support of a number of ANC MPs.

On Sunday, the DA launched an online petition calling for the snap elections.

The official opposition party called for fresh elections, as per Section 50(1) of the constitution, following the failed eighth motion of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma earlier this month, which saw a record number of MPs — including an estimated 30 to 40 ANC legislators — vote to remove a president. Other opposition parties in parliament, including the EFF, UDM, and Cope, have said they would not support the DA’s latest motion.

“The reality is that South Africa cannot afford another two years of ANC governance. With over half of South Africans living in abject poverty, 9.3 million of our people without work and our economy showing no signs of being able to recover from the recession. We need a new beginning,” John Steenhuisen, the DA’s chief whip, said in a statement on Thursday morning.

“The DA will call on all MPs to support this motion to usher in new elections. Given the enormity of the challenges lying ahead, South Africa cannot afford to have that ANC in power any longer.”

Meanwhile, the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) said yesterday that the DA is using Parliament to advance its plan to have the ANC removed from power.

“It is no surprise that the DA wants early elections, they recently set a motion of no confidence vote against the President (Zuma). Their target is ultimately to see the ANC removed from power . . .I am sure there will be another debate from the DA with the same aim after this latest one,’’ Cosatu president Sidumo Dlamini told reporters in Johannesburg after the federation’s central committee meeting.

“It is their right to do so, South Africans are watching. We have elections in 2019, the DA is campaigning and if people ignore that, they would be doing that to their own peril. The DA is campaigning to win 2019 elections and it is using Parliament to advance their wish.’’

Dlamini said there was no need ‘’to be worried’’ by the DA’s latest efforts, as the party was exploiting the political dynamics and the weaknesses in the governing ANC.

“They want to use these opportunities and ensure that they win elections should early elections take place. Cosatu continues to call for a united ANC capable of uniting all South Africans. The ANC is our ally and should unite so that parties such as the DA do not continue to exploit opportunities to their advantage,’’ Dlamini said.

The country’s biggest trade union federation has, along with the SA Communist Party (SACP), called for President Zuma to step down, and went further to ban him from attending its events.

Dlamini said the mooted judicial inquiry into state capture should not be limited to the ‘’State of Capture’’ report by former public protector Thuli Madonsela, but go beyond 1994 and reveal who was guilty of capturing government dating back from the apartheid era.

“We have always said that the South African state has long been captured. One of the areas of such capture has been through Treasury, way before 1994 . . .that is how far corporate capture of the state goes. — The Citizen/ANA.