People to Watch Out For...
Written by: Lizell Persens and Lonwabo Marele
Here are six power players in South Africa and how effectively their roles are played in the media and how they help or hinder the nation.
Helen Zille
She has been nicknamed the ‘Iron Lady’and the Democratic Alliance(DA) leader and premier of the Western Cape has earned it. There is no denying that the party has grown from strength to strength under her leadership but, following recent events, some voters are scratching their heads.
Zille’sTwitter followers and voters were left stunned when she openly lambastedCity Press’Carien Du Plessis. Following a story that was written about her party, Zille called Du Plessis out on her political preferences. This was an attack in itself and maybe even unconstitutional, but to even mention ‘race’ set tongues wagging.
Following the recent elections, The DA remains the opposition party and has done very well this year, garnering 89 seats in the National Assembly. However, the battle between Zille and the media has not stopped. Reports following the election caused her to lash out at the Sunday Times, accusing the popular newspaper of making false claims about what transpired at the party’s Federal Executive meeting(Fedex) on 16 May. According to Zille, the story has been concocted.
Lindiwe Mazibuko
Mazibuko was the DA’s parliamentary leader and has been a prominent power player since joining the party.
Shortly after the recent elections, she resigned from her office to study at Harvard University in the U.S. This sounds like a legit reason, but many still feel that there is more to the story than what meets the eye. It turns out that there may have been some possible tensionbetween herand her former colleague and mentor Zille.
Reports state that Zille claimed to have ‘made’Mazibukoand that she had to ‘saved’her junior on numerous occasions. These allegations have left the party flabbergasted as some seethe DA is having difficulty regarding black leadership.It was also implied that Mazibuko had been incompetent. Zille denies all of this and she concedes to working very hard to promoteMazibuko’s career by being nothing but supportive.
It has been said that Mazibuko would possibly have lost the election as the party’s parliamentary leader. Zille says that she haspresentedMazibuko with the Gauteng premier candidacybut that the offer was not accepted. See link regarding Mazibuko’s resignation.
If the past is anything to go by, SA politicians may not even be in power but they still make headlines (just ask Julius Malema).
Thuli Madonsela
She is one of SA’s most influential Public Protectors. She researched Nkandla and produced the Nkandla Report. The information in the report caught the eyes and ears of journalists with its description of an amphitheatre, cattle kraal, swimming pool, and a R246 million security upgrade from which President Jacob Zuma benefitted. Madonsela recommended that Zuma pay a portion of the money upfront before the next probe.
Zuma’s cabinet is suspected to be linked with the Nkandla story. View her news interview regarding the report.
Many articles about Madonsela have focused mainly on the Nkandla Report, forgetting how she took the media by storm. Yesterday she was an unknown official and all of a sudden she is darling of the news channels in SA. She cropped herself well into the image. However, how did she do it so fast? Was it one of those political tricks in SA’s informal settlementsor does she also have the bones of bad old fraud in her closet? Think about it: it’s not every day that someone questions the government out of the blue. The longer the wait, the more the media boils in scrutiny.
A second probe will take place intoZuma’s Nkandla in mid-June. The wait continues to create an excruciating fever for journalists and Madonsela.Is Madonsela’s office big enough to enforce its powers or will it end up like Scorpions?
Julius Malema
Despite most of the negative news we see week in and week out about Malema, we forget to see his never-giving-up attitude. In the space of two years,Malema was thrown out of the ANCfor ‘inside reasons’.
Apart from losing half of his properties and invested shares, he focused his political strengths on the rural areas and informal settlements of South Africa. He obtained the bulk of his votes from these settlements, especially nearMarikana.
The Marikana massacre opened a gateway for Malema to use to his advantage.
Malema seemingly posed as a leader stitching the wounds of the people of Marikana. Meanwhile, he knew what his plan of action was:to obtain seats in Parliament and begin his efforts over again.
Due to his unpaid tax and the property he lost, he continues to be inspected. He is in the red zone to the extent that, if he is found guilty, he will be imprisoned and will lose everything he has, including his party and political respect.
The EFF won 29 seats in parliament, which is good news for him. Malema states that he expected more votes but he believes that the seats gained in Parliament will be used immensely to scrutinise the on-going government.
Recently in Marikana, female activist Primrose Sonti is set to live a life she’s been dreaming of since a young age.From staying in an informal settlement for most her life, she is set to live luxuriously in free accommodation. Furthermore, Sonti is set to earn more than she has ever had in her life in the space of a month (R80 000) with a seat in Parliament and a driver to transport her wherever she desires – all because of Malema.
Malema is unpredictable - like most of the politicians in SA – and it may look like he is doing it for the good of the nation while deep down there’s that little voice that always questions his motives. It is ignored although it could play a big part when answered.
What is to his benefit? Is it for the good of the nation or himself? We impatiently wait to see.
Dali Mpofu
Former Chief Executive Officer of the South African Broadcasting Corporation and President of the South African Broadcasters Association, Mpofu is a leader who recently left the ANC to join the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
Mpofu’s move to join political leader Julius Malemain the EFF may be a move he is remembered for in history. Since Mpofu joined the EFF, their marketing and political strengths represent a threat to the ANC. The EFF won 6% of the vote and it is the fastest growing party in the country while the ANC lost 15 seats.
Mpofu believes the ANC needs to learn how to govern differently.
The election results should be looked at from a different perspective, according to Mpofu. The EFF cannot be compared to the Congress of The People (COPE) who came third in the 2009 elections (and were the ‘rookies’ of that time). He believes the EFF was denied stadia, their adverts were banned, posters were removed and the media blemished Malema. The EFF was launched only nine months ago but, through all the commotion, the ANC did not underestimate it.
“You cannot talk about freedom when some are throwing away food in Sandton while some are going to bed hungry in Alexandra,” said Mpofu at a campaign hosted by the youth culture magazine Live. “Corruption affects everyone, including the public institutions. Corruption is so big that it’s began to blend in with the reality, it’s becoming part of our everyday lives right now.”
Is this perhaps the reason he left the ANC?
Jacob Zuma
Week in and week out, Jacob Zuma keeps on making the headlines. If it’s not about his cool and fancy mansion, it’s something mysterious.
Jacob Zuma and his nephew are being investigated for the R100 billion oil deal they recently got in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Investigators are scrutinising how he is related to the story and trying to figure out how he manoeuvred himself into the process. Zuma will soon have to reshuffle his cabinet. The question is: will the new cabinet be to SA’s benefit or will it be another family ‘benefit’?
The Nkandla report is still in the news and Zuma is awaiting the Special Investigating Unit’s next probe to commence before he comments. Seemingly insistent, he believes he has nothing to hide.If he is found guilty of any fraud or scam, major action will have to be taken.
The ‘Zuma’ name continues to be an itch in the starving hands media practitioners.
Khulubuse Zuma
The nephew of the President, he recently obtained an oil deal valued at R100 billion in the dusty battlefields of the DRC - helped by his uncle and young cousin Edward Zuma. They face an investigation by a special SA Revenue Service unit (SARS). The money is strongly believed by some to be ‘political insurance’.
While the inquiry is underway, a war has broken out between SARS and the Zumas. Claims and counter-claim of business robberies, harassment, trespassing, spying, illegal phone-tapping abound and Khulubuse Zuma feels threatened.
The company Edward Zuma served as director has laid criminal charges against investigators from the elite SARS unit Tax and Customs Enforcement Investigations (TCEI). Khulubuse Zuma is strongly linked to the investigations as he owns shares in companies that are being probed.
Khulubuse falls in the chart because he has not only brought the oil deal to the public but also by the 100 head of cattle he paid as Lobola. He is an inch away from being the next Malema… a big money-spender.
So there you have it folks. These are definitely some people to follow this year.