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Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former president Jacob Zuma and member of uMkhonto weSizwe party, reacts at the Electoral Commission of SA’s results centre in Midrand, May 30 2024. Picture: REUTERS/ALET PRETORIUS
Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former president Jacob Zuma and member of uMkhonto weSizwe party, reacts at the Electoral Commission of SA’s results centre in Midrand, May 30 2024. Picture: REUTERS/ALET PRETORIUS

A good week for Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla

If there were any doubts that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla is her daddy’s girl, recent political cunning debunked any suspicion. OK, it was only in the Pan-African Parliament (an organisation with an appropriate acronym, PAP), a political playground for

people pretending to be powerful. But it was an indication of her gift for political intrigue. The Sunday Times reported that she “quietly ignored” (a euphemism for cheated?) the ANC representative, who thought it was in the bag, outsmarting him and getting herself elected to chair the Southern African Development Community caucus.

If there were any doubts that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla is her daddy’s girl, recent political cunning debunked any suspicion. OK, it was only in the Pan-African Parliament (an organisation with an appropriate acronym, PAP), a political playground for people pretending to be powerful. But it was an indication of her gift for political intrigue. The Sunday Times reported that she “quietly ignored” (a euphemism for cheated?) the ANC representative, who thought it was in the bag, outsmarting him and getting herself elected to chair the Southern African Development Community caucus.

Julius Malema. Picture. Thapelo Morebudi
Julius Malema. Picture. Thapelo Morebudi

A bad week for Julius Malema

It’s tempting to compare our latest political melodrama to one on the high seas more than 200 years ago. Today it’s HMS Red Sails facing a mutiny, with Julius Malema a remarkable reincarnation of the imperious martinet Captain William Bligh of HMS Bounty. There’s even a character resembling Fletcher Christian, the master’s mate turned mutineer, who was played by Marlon Brando in the movie depiction of the novel. Except that Floyd Shivambu today resembles a later Brando character, a corpulent Vito Corleone in The Godfather, with the girth and flatulence of speech to match.

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