ON THE MONEY
Weakening and fearful Jacob Zuma emboldens opponents in divided ANC — and investors
Investors are more confident Zuma cannot damage the state further, but now SA lacks leadership to attend to its ills, writes Stuart Theobald
It has been a year since President Jacob Zuma’s shock firing of finance minister Nhlanhla Nene, a year that has seen the ANC leader’s political capital consumed and almost exhausted. The gates of the Treasury have stood firm against the increasingly desperate attempts by him and his allies to get control of it. The pathetic efforts to undermine Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan through trumped-up charges, the laughable attempts to intimidate the banking industry into continuing to do business with the Guptas, and the stubborn refusal to accept that SA does not need another nuclear power station, let alone a fleet of them, has made the president and his allies seem increasingly like buffoons. The SABC is a theatre of the absurd while South African Airways continues to be chaired by a Zuma acolyte whose competency and probity are highly questionable. In retrospect, that day last December marks the point at which Zuma’s invincibility was lost. He now appears weak, making it easier than b...
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