BY ISLAM SABULINO.
Harare, Zimbabwe. (News of The South)- The South African embattled leader Jacob Zuma has finally succumbed to pressure from his own party to resign with immediate effect.
Like Zanu Pf did to Mugabe, the ANC told Zuma to step down or face parliamentary impeachment.
Mr Zuma, 75, has been under immense pressure to pave way for his deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa, the current ANC frontman.
Jacob Zuma has been ruling South Africa since 2009 faces a number of corrupt allegations believed to have been perpetrated during his 9-year reign.
Police in South Africa cracked on the home of Gupta family in Johannesburg whom Zuma is believed to have close links and relationship.
In his resignation speech, Zuma started by cracking jokes to the journalists and after honouring thise whom he had worked with, he admitted that his resignation was influenced by massive pressure from his ANC colleagues.
“No life should be lost in my name and also the ANC should never be divided in my name.I have therefore come to the conclusion that i should tender my resignation as the president of South Africa, he said.
“Even though i disagree with the decision of the leadership of my party, i have always been a well mannered party member.
“As i leave i will continue to serve the people of South Africa as well as ANC, the only political party i have known since childhood.
However, the resignation of Jacob Zuma brings to an end of his 9-year grip on power.During these years, Mr Zuma’s government was marred by massive levels of corruption, boardroom squbbles and infighting, according to inner sources of the party.
The National Executive Committee of ANC held a meeting on Tuesday with the aim of recalling Mr Zuma, giving him a 24 hour ultimatum to tender his resignation.Therefore, the ANC chief whip, Mr Jackson Mthembu immediately announced plans for a parliamentary motion of vote of no confidence for Thursday, with Ramaphosa replacing Zuma as the new president.As such Zuma’s resignation marked a week of fast and furious events in the history of South Africa.
Mr Ramaphosa is expected to be sworn in Thursday(today) as the new president of the Republic of South Africa.Ramaphosa was already the overwhelming candidate to romp into electoral triumphant in the 2019 general elections.
The resignation of Jacob Zuma as the president of South Africa comes hot on the heels of another resignation of another popular figure in the Southern Africa political forum in the form of Robert Mugabe who, in November 2017 tendered his resignation under similar circumstance of that of Zuma.
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