Unhappy Birthday, Mr President: Protesters, ANC members call for Zuma to step down

13 April 2017 - 08:00 By SIPHO MABENA
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IT'S TIME TO GO, MR PRESIDENT: Thousands of people took to the streets of Pretoria for a National Day of Action protest organised by opposition parties calling for President Jacob Zuma to resign. The grounds of the Union Buildings were packed with people of all political parties and all races.
IT'S TIME TO GO, MR PRESIDENT: Thousands of people took to the streets of Pretoria for a National Day of Action protest organised by opposition parties calling for President Jacob Zuma to resign. The grounds of the Union Buildings were packed with people of all political parties and all races.
Image: ALON SKUY

Johannesburg marketing consultant Reagan Mitchell was deep in thought as he watched the sea of people flooding the Union Buildings lawns in Pretoria on Wednesday.

Alone at the back of the huge crowd, the 33-year-old father of two could not believe he was part of "this historic, iconic and revolutionary moment".

He had marched all the way from Church Square, in the city, with one objective - to unite with fellow South Africans "for a better future".

The people who are going to be worst affected by Zuma's cabinet reshuffle are the poorest of the poor, he said.

"I have never seen such a huge crowd. What I see here is amazing," Mitchell said.    

  • Zuma a disaster - PatelDipak Patel, a senior ANC member and former Umkhonto weSizwe operative, has said it is time to "rid ourselves of this home-grown disaster of a president". 

He condemned the leadership of President Jacob Zuma - who was elsewhere, celebrating his birthday - as self-indulgent, self-serving and infested with cronyism.

Mitchell said a great leader had to be a servant of the people and be people-centred.

People put Zuma in his position because they had confidence in him, but he has betrayed them.

"What you (Zuma) have done is enrich yourself and your family and all your cronies, and the worst is that the poorest of the poor are not benefiting from your administration," Mitchell said.

He pleaded with ANC MPs to vote against Zuma in the proposed vote of no confidence.

  • ANC MP calls for top-level meeting on ZumaA senior ANC leader has called for an urgent meeting of the party's powerful national executive committee to discuss growing public calls for President Jacob Zuma to resign. 

If given a chance to speak to Zuma, he would say: "Mr President, I am very disappointed in your leadership. Mr President, your decisions have been irrational. Mr President, you have been captured by the Guptas ..."

Emily Mohapi, 94, would not miss the march, despite battling sore knees and being dependent on her walking stick.

She left her home in Protea South, Soweto, at 6am and got on a bus to Pretoria.

"I do not have a house, I live in a shack. I do not have water and none of my children is working. There is nothing to rejoice about," she said.

"What I want to see now is Zuma gone because he is destroying instead of building our country."

  • I'm staying, says ZumaPresident Jacob Zuma used his 75th birthday celebrations to cement his position as the country's head and ease the concerns of his supporters amid growing calls for his removal from office. 

Ramesh Kana, a 42-year-old filling station owner from Johannesburg, said: "I am unhappy about corruption, the axing of our finance minister (Pravin Gordhan). I think he was doing a fantastic job; he was keeping our good [investment grade] status and his axing was done for the benefit of a few people and not for the whole country."

Kana said the ANC had capable and moral leadership but good people were being sidelined by the corrupt few. He said he would be happy if Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa became president.

"We want a clean-up of corruption; it has got out of hand."

First-year University of Pretoria genetics student Hannah Snyman, 18, said she could not stand by while "my future is being destroyed by people who are not fit to rule".

"I have everything to lose if the current situation continues.

"There is no guarantee this march will bring change but it is better to try than to fold our arms and continue as if everything is okay," she said.

Opposition party leaders took turns to berate Zuma in front of an estimated 30000 protesters at the Union Buildings.

"If not wanting Zuma is racist, then we are proud racists," EFF leader Julius Malema said.

"We have united for the purpose of taking back our beautiful country," Malema said, adding that the office of the president belonged to the people, not the ANC or Zuma.

United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa cited the recent credit downgradings as one of his main reasons for wanting Zuma to go.

"Everyone will suffer. The rich will become poor but, worse, the poor will become poorer," he said.

He said that, according to the ANC, only Zuma was right - the ratings agencies, the public protector, the Constitutional Court and opposition parties were all "misguided".

Have you ears to listen, Mr President?

As opposition parties came together to demand that President Jacob Zuma vacate the Union Buildings, a growing number of the ANC's own have spoken out.

Joel Netshitenzhe

The ANC national executive committee member and former party political strategist told Business Day that the NEC had the power to reverse the latest cabinet reshuffle; and MPs could vote to remove Zuma. Netshitenzhe said that Zuma defied some ANC leaders when he fired, without consulting them, finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy, Mcebisi Jonas.

Dipak Patel

The former Umkhonto weSizwe member, writing for TMG Digital, urged South Africans to "rid themselves of this disaster of a state president".

''Some have usurped power, some have begun to threaten our constitutional paradigm and are, it seems, intent on furthering their own enrichment. It's time to defend our earned gains, and to do this within and outside of our movement."

Kgalema Motlanthe

During the funeral of apartheid veteran Ahmed Kathrada, the former president read extracts from "Kathy's" letter to Zuma, written more than a year ago, in which he called on Zuma to do the noble thing and quit.

"Now is not the time to mince words," said Motlanthe.

Mathews Phosa

At the same funeral, the former ANC treasurer-general said: "The NEC of the ANC must stop being cowards. They must take a moral stand and say this man has violated the constitution. He is in breach of his position. It can't be enough for a president to just say: 'I'm sorry'. He must say: 'I am sorry' and step down."

Barbara Hogan

Kathrada's widow had a message for Zuma: "Mr President, do you have ears to listen and eyes to see? If you have ears to listen and eyes to see, you will step down."

Brian Hlongwa

The Gauteng legislature's chief whip spoke of ANC lip service.

"There seems to be a credibility gap between what we proclaim and what we do. The ANC does not exist for itself."

Makhosi Khoza

The ANC MP posted a rant on Facebook this week saying: "The South African tragedy is a continent catastrophe. I wish my ANC leaders could see what I see.feel what I feel. I wish they could understand that indecision is tantamount to giving the DA, EFF.power on a silver platter."

- additional reporting by Naledi Shange

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