'It's nothing shocking': Zuma's daughter Thuthukile on family's diverse political affiliations

The 2024 elections are being hotly contested in former president Jacob Zuma's household as his children build their own political careers campaigning for different parties while their father endorses the new uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party.

Zuma's daughter Thuthukile and her mother, minister in the presidency Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, this week embraced the diversity in the family saying it symbolised the fruits of democracy post the apartheid era. Thuthukile caused a stir on social media this week as she reiterated her support for the ANC despite the party's fallout with her father and public rivalry during the May 29 election campaign.

“I am a proud daughter of President Zuma and Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma. We are undergoing a very difficult period but we put our differences aside and campaign for the movement of Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela. To Congress we remain loyal and true,” Thuthukile said as her sisters posted pictures in MK Party regalia with their father.

Thuthukile's political choice mirrors that of Zuma's son eldest son Edward. Their brother Duduzane has taken a different route and is campaigning for his newly established party, All Game Changers. Meanwhile, his twin, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, has been holding her father's hand since announcing his support for the MK Party on December 16.

“It is nothing shocking,” said Thuthukile speaking to Newzroom Afrika, adding “it is part of what the ANC fought for, the freedom to associate and belong to any political formation that you want. They [the Zuma family] are living out exactly what the ANC fought for them to do.”

Thuthukile choosing to stay in her mother's political home and creating a name for herself is no surprise. She describes her mother as a “disciplined, consistent and exemplary leader of the ANC”.

She believes her father's campaign for the MK Party was unfortunate for the ANC.

“It is quite unfortunate for the ANC to lose a member, I think every time the ANC loses a member it is unfortunate. In this instance, it is not just a member, it is a leader, a stalwart and a president,” she said.

Thuthukile is no stranger to the spotlight. She dominated headlines in 2014 when she was appointed chief of staff in the department of telecommunications & postal services, a position she held from 2014-2015 when her father was still president. She was promoted to the position after working as a public liaison officer for the State Security Agency from 2013-2014 under former minister Siyabonga Cwele.

Here's a glimpse at the Zuma family campaigning for different parties on social media: