Jacob Zuma twists in the wind, wondering whether the National Prosecuting Authority is going to reinstate corruption charges against him before the ANC's December conference. If the NPA does recharge the embattled but still tremendously popular (in some circles, at least) Zuma, it will almost assuredly scuttle any hopes that he would be able to succeed Thabo Mbeki as ANC, and thus South Africa's, President.
(Jacob Zuma)
Meanwhile, what of Mbeki's wishes as to who will follow him in the party's and state's seat of power? Well, one possibility is that he will remain the party's president, thus giving him the leverage effectively to appoint his own successor. If that situation comes to pass (and I, at least, wish Mbeki would remove himself from consideration for even the party Presidency, lest Big Man Syndrome By Proxy set in) who might Mbeki's choices to lead the country be? According to a report in The Mail & Guardian:
If President Thabo Mbeki remains ANC president and therefore has the power to appoint his own successor, South Africa after 2009 will be run by his two most-trusted lieutenants, Minister of Foreign Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and government's head of policy-making, Joel Netshitenzhe.
The strategy emerged in the Mbeki camp after deliberations with Netshitenzhe, who has insisted previously that he is not interested in holding any of the top positions in the party. But now he has been persuaded that the ANC needs him to step up to the plate and help wrest control from presidential hopeful Jacob Zuma.
(Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma)
That Dlamini-Zuma might succeed Mbeki, who has indicated that he would like to be succeeded by a woman, has aroused more than a little bit of excitement. But the fact that Mbeki seems to be willing to use the Zuma situation as a pretense to perpetuate his own power within the party is disquieting, even if his doing so is better than the rumors that he might want to change the Constitution to be able to serve as South Africa's president for another term. Nonetheless, these machinations are also telling as to how deep the Mbeki-Zuma divide has become in the last few years.
(Jacob Zuma and Thabo Mbeki arrive at Adalaide Tambo's memorial service in February 2007)
