NEWS ANALYSIS: EFF’s cosying up to Zuma signals an explosive political year ahead
Julius Malema's party and the former president now have a common enemy in Ramaphosa as he tries to clean up corruption and set SA on a new trajectory
The current phase in SA politics has come full circle. This has been the era of Jacob Zuma, a man who beat the odds to become president, and then became the biggest danger to the state while in office. After surviving a rape trial and fending off corruption charges, he outmanoeuvred Thabo Mbeki, once the most influential man on the continent, to take leadership of the ANC and the country. Zuma’s time in office was defined by spectacular corruption and fierce political battles, including within the ANC and its alliance. It led to Cosatu’s general secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, and biggest affiliate, Numsa, being booted out and a realignment in labour, with political affiliation tilting away from the ANC. One of the intraparty battles saw Zuma and the leadership of the ANC Youth League go head to head, leading to the expulsion of some of the league’s top leaders. The EFF was quintessentially an anti-Zuma force, leading the factional battles from outside the ANC. EFF leader Julius Malema ...
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