Former president Thabo Mbeki urged MPs on Tuesday to vote "honestly" in a vote of no confidence against President Jacob Zuma. Mbeki‚ who is currently in Kenya as an African Union observer for their national elections‚ said South African MPs needed to ask themselves if they had confidence in their president‚ "depending on what this president has been doing". "They have got to make that assessment‚" said Mbeki. He said the secret vote was decided upon to protect MPs who wanted to support the motion of no confidence. "The reason that it was decided‚ the Speaker decided‚ that they should have the responsibility to vote secretly‚ is so that they should vote truthfully‚ without fear that maybe the party‚ in this case the ANC‚ might banish them if they vote in support of the motion of no confidence… "[The secret vote decision was made] so that they [can] vote honestly and according to their consciences and according to the information that they have.
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