FORMER president Jacob Zuma has been disqualified by South Africa’s Electoral Commission from contesting a parliamentary seat in the upcoming election scheduled for May 29. The commission informed Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party that he is ineligible to run for office, citing constitutional restrictions barring individuals with convictions exceeding one year from holding public office.
Zuma’s disqualification stems from his sentencing in July 2021 to 15 months in jail for contempt of court, related to his refusal to testify before a commission probing corruption during his presidency. Despite being released on medical parole after two months to serve his sentence under house arrest, Zuma, aged 81, announced last December that he would abstain from voting or campaigning for his party, the ruling African National Congress (ANC), in the upcoming elections.
The Electoral Commission has granted Zuma until April 2 to appeal the decision of his disqualification. This development follows the ANC’s suspension of Zuma, a party member of six decades, in January, indicating a widening divide between him and current President Cyril Ramaphosa.
In a related matter, the ANC’s attempt to deregister the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, aligned with Zuma, was rejected by the court this week. The ANC contested the legality of the party’s registration last September, but Judge Lebogang Modiba dismissed their claim, affirming the lawfulness of the party’s registration by the deputy chief electoral officer, Masego Sheburi.
A recent study by the Social Research Foundation suggests that the MK party, particularly influential in KwaZulu-Natal, Zuma’s home province, could significantly erode ANC’s support. Analysts view the upcoming elections as pivotal, with the possibility of the ANC losing its parliamentary majority for the first time since the end of apartheid in 1994. Despite consistently securing over 60 percent of the vote in past elections, except in 2019 when it dipped to 57.5 percent, the ANC faces a challenging political landscape, with its current 230 seats in the 400-member National Assembly potentially at risk.
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