The Western world has come to expect South Africa’s leaders
since Nelson Mandela to reflect the sophistication and erudition of
its first black president. Jacob Zuma, known as JZ, the newly
elected head of the African National Congress (ANC), the dominant
political party, is about to change that perception.
It is said that Jacob Zuma was virtually illiterate until his
adult years. His ten years in prison on Robben Island and fifteen
more in exile earned JZ a graduate degree in political action. Zuma
comes from a Zulu subsistence farming family in the rural town of
Nkandla in the KwaZulu — Natal province. He had joined
Umkhonto we Sizwe (armed wing of the ANC) only two years
before he was arrested for his organizational work as a trade
unionist and sent off to jail in 1964. He was all of 22 at the
time.
Returning to South Africa at age 47, he had acquired all the
skills of an experienced political operator. The ebullient
personality that had sustained Jacob Zuma through his years on
Robben Island and later as an intelligence chief in exile served
him well in entering public life upon his return home in 1990. He
spoke as an exuberant voice of the people and they responded in
kind.
Most importantly, though JZ lacks the formal education of those
who preceded him in leadership, Mandela, Oliver Tambo, Thabo Mbeki,
he makes up for their greater sophistication by his oratorical
ability to relate to the impoverishment in the villages and
townships. Jacob Zuma is a man of the people and loves showing it.
He sings the songs of liberation before and after his speeches, and
the audience reacts as they would to an African rock star. His and
their favorite is “Mshini Wami,” which loosely translates,
“Bring Me My Machine Gun.”
To say that South African business fears the strong socialist
views of Zuma is an understatement. It is clear that the
traditional wing of the ANC, as well as the highly successful
manufacturing and mining interests of the country, are quietly
urging on the National Prosecuting Authority. The prosecutor has
charged the newly elected head of the ANC with fraud and
corruption. The trial is set for August.
It isn’t the first time JZ has been up on corruption charges:
the earlier ones, also on a multi-billion dollar arms deal, were
dropped on a technicality. He was acquitted of rape charges,
involving a family friend, last year. In both instances, he was
defended by his followers as a victim of a political smear
campaign. Despite these concerted actions against him, Jacob Zuma
succeeded last December in overwhelmingly defeating the
institutional favorite, President Thabo Mbeki, in the ANC
voting.
Jacob Zuma is destined to play a leadership role in South Africa
no matter the objection and maneuvering of the traditional forces,
black and white. He now heads the ANC and has the strong support of
the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South
African Communist Party — to say nothing of his ground roots
following in the provinces and townships. The ANC controls the vote
for president of the nation, and that election occurs in 2009.
The hope of JZ’s rivals is that he will be convicted and thus
prevented by constitutional law from becoming president of South
Africa. The only trouble with that thinking is that placing Jacob
Zuma in jail and preventing him from running for the nation’s top
office can trigger a violent public reaction throughout the
country. No one — not even JZ — wants that.
The implicit threat remains, however, that continued pursuit of
Jacob Zuma on criminal charges that prevent him from legally
accepting the guaranteed endorsement of the ANC — and thus a sure
presidential victory — may result in the destruction of the
political process as it currently exists.
JZ has represented himself as South Africa’s “everyman,” or as
he has said: “I am just a little herd boy from Nkandla who happened
to be a trade unionist and politician who participated in the
struggle. Rest assured, I will always be what I am. I will never
change.”
One way or the other, the South African establishment, black and
white, will have to deal with Jacob Zuma. The future of the nation
as a stable political and economic entity may be at stake.
