One day, when the history of South Africa is written, three men will be remembered for having sold their organisation, their people and their country down the river. Those three men are Cyril Ramaphosa, Gwede Mantashe and Zweli Mkhize – the deputy president, secretary-general and treasurer-general of the ANC.
Last week, these three men stood by and watched as Jacob Zuma handed their country, the Republic of South Africa, to the Gupta family – and opened the floodgates of corruption, looting and descent into hell.
They knew the cabinet reshuffle that happened last week, conducted in shame in the middle of the night, had nothing to do with improving the government. They knew Zuma had nothing to do with the list of new appointees. They knew the whole thing was a sham, a con, a robbery.
How do I know all this? Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize told us all that this is what happened.
On Saturday, Mkhize issued a statement saying that “unlike previous consultations which take place with senior officials of the ANC during such appointments and changes to the composition of the national executive, the briefing by the president left a distinct impression that the ANC is no longer the centre and thus depriving the leadership collective of its responsibility to advise politically on executive matters”.
Read that again. Mkhize is saying “the ANC is no longer the centre” of power. That means that someone else, an unelected entity, is running this country. The ANC is no longer in charge. He is saying the party you voted for has been usurped by someone else. I have not read anything as chilling as that with regards to my country in my entire life.
A coup, says the treasurer-general of the governing ANC, has taken place. All he needed to do was add the obvious: the Guptas have effected that coup.
Ramaphosa had confirmed this on Friday, when he said: “It was not a consultation because he came with a ready-made list”.
Earlier on Friday, Mantashe had said: “The cabinet list was developed somewhere else and given to us to legitimise”.
These three are the most powerful people in South Africa. Basically, when their country was stolen, they sat and watched.
So now, after reflecting, will they do something about it? Will they stand up and speak? Will they repudiate this sham, captured, administration whose sole intent is to steal from the fiscus and make Zuma, the Guptas and their family rich? Not a chance. In fact, they are going to continue to give Zuma legitimacy.
How do I know? They have told us so. Asked if he would resign‚ Ramaphosa said: “No‚ I will not. I’m staying to serve our people in government.”
In his statement, Mkhize said he wishes Zuma’s new gaggle of cabinet appointees “well in their new responsibilities!”
What is the man smoking? Mkhize, Ramaphosa and Mantashe are deluded if they think that Malusi Gigaba is at national Treasury to drive growth. He is there to enrich and protect the Guptas and push through a corrupt Russian nuclear build programme. If he is not, then let’s see him continue with the work of Pravin Gordhan and Mcebisi Jonas in the two court matters implicating the Gupta family. He won’t.
The truth is that there is more integrity in Jonas’s little finger than there is in the entire body of Gigaba. That’s why he and Gordhan were fired. They are good, honest, men who want to do the right thing for their country.
Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize are being cowardly. When the time came for them to show some backbone and, as Mantashe likes to put it, “give leadership”, they have been found wanting.
Zuma has never been more vulnerable. His support in the ANC’s national executive is just more than 50% now, with many prepared to jump ship.
The SA Communist Party has told the man to his face he is a liar and a thief and he should step down. His support is made up of gangs of thieves in the kleptocratic provinces of Mpumalanga, North West and Free State.
I understand that there are many sensitivities. But these three leaders need to follow Gordhan’s example and show us that “our souls are not for sale ... our country is not for sale”. They need to stand more clearly, more resolutely and call on the ANC leadership to support them in getting rid of the man who has sold their country to the Gupta family.
In this week, they must ask themselves this: what would the great ANC presidents Tambo, Mandela, Luthuli, Mahabane, Seme, Dube and others do?
They would gird their loins,they would speak and rage against the dying of the light of our beloved South Africa.
Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize can redeem themselves. They must call an emergency meeting of the ANC NEC. They must have one item on the agenda: the recall of Jacob Zuma. They must use every ounce of their being to organise every single NEC member. Then they must bring this to a vote. Zuma will go. He must go. He is a disgrace to the ANC, to us, to our people.
Ramaphosa, Mantashe, Mkhize 'selling' SA with their silence
Last week, these three men stood by and watched as Jacob Zuma handed their country, the Republic of South Africa, to the Gupta family – and opened the floodgates of corruption, looting and descent into hell.
They knew the cabinet reshuffle that happened last week, conducted in shame in the middle of the night, had nothing to do with improving the government. They knew Zuma had nothing to do with the list of new appointees. They knew the whole thing was a sham, a con, a robbery.
How do I know all this? Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize told us all that this is what happened.
On Saturday, Mkhize issued a statement saying that “unlike previous consultations which take place with senior officials of the ANC during such appointments and changes to the composition of the national executive, the briefing by the president left a distinct impression that the ANC is no longer the centre and thus depriving the leadership collective of its responsibility to advise politically on executive matters”.
Read that again. Mkhize is saying “the ANC is no longer the centre” of power. That means that someone else, an unelected entity, is running this country. The ANC is no longer in charge. He is saying the party you voted for has been usurped by someone else. I have not read anything as chilling as that with regards to my country in my entire life.
A coup, says the treasurer-general of the governing ANC, has taken place. All he needed to do was add the obvious: the Guptas have effected that coup.
Ramaphosa had confirmed this on Friday, when he said: “It was not a consultation because he came with a ready-made list”.
Earlier on Friday, Mantashe had said: “The cabinet list was developed somewhere else and given to us to legitimise”.
These three are the most powerful people in South Africa. Basically, when their country was stolen, they sat and watched.
So now, after reflecting, will they do something about it? Will they stand up and speak? Will they repudiate this sham, captured, administration whose sole intent is to steal from the fiscus and make Zuma, the Guptas and their family rich? Not a chance. In fact, they are going to continue to give Zuma legitimacy.
How do I know? They have told us so. Asked if he would resign‚ Ramaphosa said: “No‚ I will not. I’m staying to serve our people in government.”
In his statement, Mkhize said he wishes Zuma’s new gaggle of cabinet appointees “well in their new responsibilities!”
What is the man smoking? Mkhize, Ramaphosa and Mantashe are deluded if they think that Malusi Gigaba is at national Treasury to drive growth. He is there to enrich and protect the Guptas and push through a corrupt Russian nuclear build programme. If he is not, then let’s see him continue with the work of Pravin Gordhan and Mcebisi Jonas in the two court matters implicating the Gupta family. He won’t.
The truth is that there is more integrity in Jonas’s little finger than there is in the entire body of Gigaba. That’s why he and Gordhan were fired. They are good, honest, men who want to do the right thing for their country.
Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize are being cowardly. When the time came for them to show some backbone and, as Mantashe likes to put it, “give leadership”, they have been found wanting.
Zuma has never been more vulnerable. His support in the ANC’s national executive is just more than 50% now, with many prepared to jump ship.
The SA Communist Party has told the man to his face he is a liar and a thief and he should step down. His support is made up of gangs of thieves in the kleptocratic provinces of Mpumalanga, North West and Free State.
I understand that there are many sensitivities. But these three leaders need to follow Gordhan’s example and show us that “our souls are not for sale ... our country is not for sale”. They need to stand more clearly, more resolutely and call on the ANC leadership to support them in getting rid of the man who has sold their country to the Gupta family.
In this week, they must ask themselves this: what would the great ANC presidents Tambo, Mandela, Luthuli, Mahabane, Seme, Dube and others do?
They would gird their loins,they would speak and rage against the dying of the light of our beloved South Africa.
Ramaphosa, Mantashe and Mkhize can redeem themselves. They must call an emergency meeting of the ANC NEC. They must have one item on the agenda: the recall of Jacob Zuma. They must use every ounce of their being to organise every single NEC member. Then they must bring this to a vote. Zuma will go. He must go. He is a disgrace to the ANC, to us, to our people.
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