Jacob Zuma, who once led the African National Congress (ANC), has been accused of campaigning to oust him from power.
Former South African President Jacob Zuma has been expelled from the ruling African National Congress (ANC) after supporting a rival party in May parliamentary elections in which the ANC lost its majority, the party said on Monday.
“Zuma has actively questioned the integrity of the ANC and campaigned to remove the ANC from power, while claiming that he has not disbanded his membership,” ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula told reporters.
“This conduct is irreconcilable with the spirit of organizational discipline and the letter of the Constitution of the ANC.”
Zuma, who once led the African National Congress, was suspended from the party in January after announcing he would support the new uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in the general election. He later became the leader and face of MK.
MK performed better than expected in the election, winning around 15 percent of the vote, a major factor in the ANC losing its majority for the first time since the apartheid era.
The ANC won 40.18 percent of the vote in the election, down from 57.50 percent in 2019, forcing it to form a coalition government for the first time since it seized power at the end of white-minority rule in 1994. MK is now the official opposition.
MK responded to media reports that Zuma had been expelled in a statement early Monday, criticising the ANC's process and condemning the “grave injustices” against Zuma.
“President Zuma will contact his legal team to urgently determine a course of action,” he added.
Zuma will have 21 days to appeal the decision, the ANC said.
Zuma, whose nine years in office from 2009 were marked by corruption scandals and slow economic growth, has been at odds with the ANC leadership since he was forced to resign as party leader in 2018. He has repeatedly lashed out at his successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.
