African National Congress (ANC) leader Jacob Zuma, soon to stand trial on corruption charges, says he would ”decentralise” power if elected South Africa’s next president, the Sunday Independent reported.
Politicians and the Congress of South Africa Trade Unions (Cosatu) labour federation have accused President Thabo Mbeki, who has been in office since 1999, for centralising power in the presidency.
”Once you allow that tendency [of centralising power] you are in danger that the people will not be able to defend their democracy [or] defend their power,” Zuma was quoted as telling the newspaper in an interview.
”We must never allow it, it is a dangerous thing,” he said, adding that under his rule, the ANC leadership — not him personally — would take decisions on state matters.
Zuma — whose trial on 16 charges ranging from money-laundering to racketeering is to begin next week — added he would prefer to serve only one term in office, and that he would fire incompetent officials.
Zuma (66) who toppled Mbeki as ANC leader at a party conference last December, was sacked by Mbeki as deputy head of state in 2005 after his former financial adviser and friend, Schabir Shaik, was handed a 15-year sentence for bribery.
Initial corruption allegations against Zuma were struck off the roll in 2006 by a judge who told prosecutors their case was a disaster. The charges were reinstated, however, shortly after Zuma became ANC leader.
Meanwhile, South African Communist Party’s (SACP) deputy secretary general Jeremy Cronin said Zuma will not need to wear orange prison garb when he becomes president of the country.
Cronin, addressing the SACP’s KwaZulu-Natal provincial
council in Durban on Saturday, said: ”Next year the ANC, supported by the alliance will win the election. The next president [of the country] will be Jacob Zuma.
”I have to disagree with [Julius] Malema. That president will not be wearing orange,” said Cronin, referring to the ANC Youth League president’s comments earlier this week that Zuma would rule from prison if he was convicted.
Cronin said that while there were no questions about the ANC-led alliance winning the next election, due to be held in April 2009, but that it may not supersede the results achieved in 2004. He also warned of the challenges facing the tripartite alliance of the ANC, the
SACP and Cosatu.
”We know there are huge challenges. Do we have the capacity as the Communist Party? Do we have the will. We can think we have won at Polokwane, but things can go wrong.”
He said that the alliance partners needed to ”consolidate” as ”the strategic political centre”.
Cronin said that while alliance partners were working together in KwaZulu-Natal, this was not necessarily the case in other parts of the country.
”[ANC] comrades sometimes forget there is an alliance. It is important for the ANC to work with its alliance partners,” he said. – AFP, Sapa