It’s hard to embarrass President Zuma“ARE we ready?” asked Jacob Zuma, shuffling awkwardly as he prepared to address the nation. South Africans had paused their Friday nights and gathered around televisions to watch the president’s prime-time broadcast, called barely an hour earlier. There was a momentous air to it all: the last time a presidential address had been called on such short notice it was to announce the death of Nelson Mandela.
The latest call, on April 1st, came after a spate of scandals. A day earlier, South Africa’s highest court had found that Mr Zuma had breached the constitution by disregarding an order to repay public money he had spent on his private mansion, Nkandla. (He claimed that a new swimming pool was a security feature, and therefore a legitimate expense.) Many hoped he was about to announce his resignation.
But despite looking tired and cowed, Mr Zuma fought on. He apologised, not for failing in his sworn duty to uphold the constitution, but for the “frustration and confusion” around the powers of the public protector, an anti-corruption ombudsman who had ordered him to...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/1TDYVuJ
Share this
Related Posts
Decade high inflation set to drown savers: Can you keep your cash afloat?
SAVERS are caught between cost of living increases, pandemic recovery and a turbulent job market but there could be w- A controversial register of citizens in north-east IndiaSome 4m worry they may become stateless
from Asia https://ift.tt/2LO54rZ
- Why some countries are turning off the internet on exam days
AS LONG as there have been exams, students have found ways to cheat. Today the correct answers are just a few taps awa
- Inflation red alert: Bank of England under crippling pressure as prices soar
INFLATION has soared to a ten-year high casting further uncertainty over what the central bank might decide in Thursd
EmoticonEmoticon