The motion of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma has failed: the 177 MPs who voted in favour of it were outvoted by 198 against. There were nine abstentions, and five MPs were absent — a source of contention. The motion required 201 votes to pass, and the ANC’s 249 MPs meant that if all opposition MPs voted in favour, at least 50 ANC MPs would have had to vote with them. The final tally suggests at least 20 ANC MPs voted against the party line. The outcome — the more widely expected result — will be a relief to the ANC, which is struggling with deep internal divisions, and Zuma’s unseating would have left the party in chaos. But it widens the rift in the tripartite alliance, and provides more impetus for the SACP to make good on threats to go it alone. Zuma’s survival also continues to present the opposition with ammunition, not least because the president is implicated in state caoture allegations, along with presiding over an economy in recession that is shedding jobs, and wher...
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