It’s the people, or #OyVeyJacobZuma Zumarism

Jacob Zuma has been a disastrous and calamitous runaway train on a demolition derby

And so the endgame begins. As expected, President Jacob Zuma has taken the propitious step of reshuffling his cabinet, ousting trusted Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, and thereby demonstrating a shameful disregard for the commonplace notion that government should treat the capital of its taxpayers with respect.

There has been lots of vague speculation over why it would be necessary to dismiss a loyal and respected finance minister, laced with hints and suggestions, so let’s be clear on this topic: the president is dismissing Gordhan because he wants more control over the fiscus and Gordhan stands in his way.

The full list of new Cabinet ministers

Who’s in and who’s out. Read the full list here

 BDliveSA

He wants more control because, like all unpopular leaders, he feels he can spend his way into people’s hearts – and particularly the hearts of his chosen recipients, his family, his friends and his supporters in the higher ranks of the party.

But by doing so, he will cause ructions within the party and chaos in the fiscus. Zuma’s legacy so far has been a catalogue of disasters for his own alliance and his own supporters. The once mighty Cosatu that bestrode the workplace in SA for years has now been reduced to essentially a union of state employees, the only group too afraid to disassociate itself from the party in power.

The South African Communist Party, once an influential think-tank within the alliance, is now discarded and demeaned. The ANC Youth League, once a fertile training ground for party cadres, is overshadowed by its breakaway political movement, the Economic Freedom Fighters.

Under his leadership, the ANC, which once commanded the support of more than two-thirds of voters, in the latest local government poll could barely muster a simple majority.
He has been a disastrous and calamitous runaway train on a demolition derby.

Zuma faces down open revolt, guts his Cabinet

Jacob Zuma’s reshuffle shock will have far-reaching consequences, with the rand falling sharply overnight and set to fall further

For the state of government finances, he has been equally a calamity. His own personal gluttony has been reflected in a fiscal position that has slid from serious to parlous. Over his term, state debt has doubled; government has borrowed more than a trillion rand; the level of business confidence is miserable and consequently, the economy has slouched into a gravelly state of bare stasis.

It seems almost inevitable now that SA’s government debt will be downgraded to junk status, but even if it is not, there is simply no conceivable way that Gordan’s successor can possibly regain the same level of trust of foreign lenders.

In response to all these setbacks, Zuma’s response has been to up the ante, trying to discover his inner Robert Mugabe. By adopting this gambit, Zuma has misjudged the country’s people, most of whom are urban dwellers who seek economic stability, not doubtful promises of grand redistribution.

Yet, in the midst of this dark time, there is one redeeming feature. The endgame has begun. Instead of being caught in a quasi-clandestine battle over the future of the party, the battle lines are clear. On one hand, stands Zumarism, with all its promise of corruption, dislocation and disfigurement. On the other, stands anti-Zumarism, with all its promise of pragmatism and a future of mutual respect.

As a result, the choice that stands before ANC members of leadership and parliament is now peculiarly stark. They need to decide on which side of history they stand. And the root question is equally stark: do they stand with the people of South African, or do they stand with Zuma and his faction.

For nobody in the party is the choice more wrenching than Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa. If he remains in the cabinet now, his already battered credibility will be lost irretrievably. He will forever be associated with a president who plainly does not even want him to be his successor. What an ignominious end to such an illustrious career.

Still, Zuma may discover that this kind of zero-sum game thinking results in the most hollow of victories.

Helen of Twitter Dethroned H.R.H. Queen of Colonialism

Mandela's key wingman Ahmed Kathrada calls for #OyVeyJacobZuma to step down from the Grave

Catch a Fire is a 2006 biographical thriller film about activists against apartheid in South Africa. The film was directed by Phillip Noyce, from a screenplay written by Shawn Slovo. Slovo's father, Joe Slovo, and mother Ruth First, leaders of the South African Communist Party and activists in the Anti-Apartheid Movement,

Catch A Fire
US theatrical release poster
Directed by	Phillip Noyce
Produced by	Tim Bevan Eric Fellner Anthony Minghella Robyn Slovo
Written by	Shawn Slovo
Starring	Derek Luke Tim Robbins Bonnie Henna
Music by	Philip Miller
Cinematography	Ron Fortunato Garry Phillips
Edited by	Jill Bilcock
Production companies	StudioCanal Working Title Films Mirage Enterprises
Distributed by	Focus Features (US) Universal Pictures International (UK)
Release date	27 October 2006 (US) 23 March 2007 (UK)
Running time	101 min[1]
Country	United Kingdom United States France South Africa
Language	English
Budget	$14 million
Box office	$5,724,236

Catch a Fire is a 2006 biographical thriller film about activists against apartheid in South Africa. The film was directed by Phillip Noyce, from a screenplay written by Shawn Slovo. Slovo's father, Joe Slovo, and mother Ruth First, leaders of the South African Communist Party and activists in the Anti-Apartheid Movement, appear as characters in the film, while her sister, Robyn Slovo, is one of the film's producers and also plays their mother Ruth First. Catch a Fire was shot on location in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique.

Plot
The film begins in "Northern Coalfields, South Africa, 1980". It revolves around Patrick Chamusso, a young, apolitical man (played by Derek Luke) who is accused of carrying out an attack against the government, and an Afrikaner police officer, Nic Vos, played by Tim Robbins. Vos is in charge of locating the perpetrators of a recent bomb attack against the Secunda CTL synthetic fuel refinery, which is the largest coal liquefaction plant in the world.

Patrick is unwillingly swept into Vos's investigation due to his inability to provide a satisfactory explanation for his whereabouts at the time of the bombing (he was actually having an affair with a woman not his wife). Eventually Patrick, his wife, Precious, (played by Bonnie Henna), and his family are tortured and savagely abused by Vos and Vos's subordinates. Desperate, Patrick says that he is willing to confess to a crime he did not commit to protect his family from torture. At last, Vos finally concludes that Patrick is innocent, and orders his release.

Fuelled by the anger at the injustices he and his family suffered, Patrick joins Umkhonto we Sizwe, the guerrilla military wing of the African National Congress and becomes exactly what Vos had initially accused him of being. This decision was an act of revenge against the government for killing his friend and tormenting not only himself but his wife as well. He attempts to execute a plan to attack Secunda, the oil refinery he used to work for, by first bombing its adjacent water supply facilities, and 15 minutes later triggering the main explosion within the refinery itself. This would allow the refinery's workforce to flee between the two explosions, and not be harmed. Also, the damage of the first bomb would reduce the possibility of successfully extinguishing the fire caused by the second, main explosion. Patrick succeeds in the first part, but the second bomb is discovered by Vos and deactivated.

Patrick is arrested and sentenced to 24 years in prison, after his wife goes to Vos and tells him where Patrick is, because she fell for a simple trick in which Vos left photographs of Patrick talking to a female member of the ANC. Through her unjust jealousy she sells him out. He is released early due to the abolition of apartheid.

Precious, who has remarried, is waiting for him and apologizes, and Patrick forgives her and he says he is sorry as well. Some time later, he has been trying to adjust to normal life but the pain he felt wouldn't leave him. One day, he sees Vos sitting out near a small body of water opposite to the side he and friends are on. He creeps over and through some brush sees that it is indeed Vos, and though a part of him wants to break Vos' neck, he decides that it is not worth it, and the real Patrick Chamusso is shown explaining that he told himself then and there that only through forgiveness would he truly be free. He left Vos alone, and went on to remarry and take in over 80 orphaned children in South Africa to provide a home for kids who lost their families during the anti-apartheid struggle.

Cast

• Derek Luke as Patrick Chamusso
• Tim Robbins as Nic Vos
• Bonnie Henna as Precious Chamusso[2]
• Mncedisi Shabangu as Zeko September
• Tumisho Masha as Obadi
• Sithembiso Khumalo as Sixpence
• Terry Pheto as Miriam
• Marius Weyers as the Field Commander
• Michele Burgers as Anna Vos
• Mpho Lovinga as Johnny Piliso
• Malcolm Purkey as Joe Slovo
• Robyn Slovo as Ruth First
• Patrick Chamusso as himself
• Sibusiso Mhlongo as a Photographer

Critical reception
The film received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 75% out of 141 professional critics gave the film a positive review, with a rating average of 6.6/10 and the critical consensus being: "No stranger to the political thriller, director Phillip Noyce tackles apartheid and terrorism with experienced gusto, while Derek Luke and Tim Robbins hand in nuanced performances."[3]

Fortress Zuma coming under attack by forces led by Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan

After yesterday’s outrageous blunder I’m trying to work out if SA President Jacob Zuma has now completely lost it. Or whether he is so compromised he just has to jerk whenever his strings are pulled by the crony capitalist Guptas.

Zuma’s instruction that his Finance Minister abort planned presentations to investors in London and New York surpasses base stupidity. Pravin Gordhan has worked tirelessly to court the foreign capital every developing country must attract to grow. These roadshows are critical to maintaining SA’s investment grade rating – without which its cost of borrowing will increase, punishing, especially, the poor.

Being ordered to return home on an apparent whim from Pretoria not only humiliates Gordhan – it needlessly irritates those whose cash injections can make the difference between a flourishing or floundering economy. It is no coincidence the Guptas are publicly demanding Gordhan appear in court tomorrow to defend himself against their absurd assertions.

Rian Malan nailed it in a brilliant piece on Biznews yesterday. He reckons SA’s constitution “has come to mark the great divide in our society. On the one side we have forces raged behind Gordhan. On the other, Zuma and his primitive accumulationists.” If Zuma wins, Malan concludes, “SA will follow Idi Amin and Mugabe into the abyss.” This is going to be quite a week.

#RIPDemocracyinSouthAfrica Democratic Alliance to approach High Court on unlawful force in Parliament

Last night was a sad night for South Africa, and can only have left all South Africans disheartened and angry.

The disturbing violence in the House showed quite clearly the true state of our nation – a deeply unpopular government at war with itself has broken Parliament, and has broken the Constitution. The Democratic Alliance cannot, and will not, let the ANC break South Africa. South Africans were rightly appalled at the conduct of their Parliament and their government last night. They deserve a new, DA-led government that puts them and their futures first.

Last night, many more people saw the true and ugly face of the ANC. The mission to remove this President and this ANC government from office is now more urgent than ever. Our democracy depends on it.

There will be some who still, even after last night, believe that the ANC can be saved. To them I say now – The ANC cannot revive itself. It is morally and intellectually dead. No matter who leads the ANC, it will still focus on the few, at the expense of the many.

Last night was also a wakeup call for those who want change. We cannot wait any longer, or rely on the collapse of the ANC. We need a movement of people who love South Africa and hate seeing it go this way, a movement of people that stands united behind an idea of what South Africa can be – not behind a political label or a policy obsession. No ideas can be too big, or audacious, for us to consider. If we are going to win, we need massive, far reaching realignment. Everything is “on the table”.

I want every South African to know what is happening here in Parliament, and how the violence and corruption here, is keeping them locked in poverty there. I am personally going to criss-cross the country and visit as many towns and villages as I can to get the word out: this is not about our party or any party. This is about rescuing our country from the despair we saw on display last night. I am calling on all South Africans, on other opposition party leaders, on civil society – let’s organise, get to work, raise money and drive the effort to save Nelson Mandela’s dream.

The President’s address itself – delivered to a half empty parliament – was defensive, and racially divisive, lacking any new ideas. A tired rehash of old, failed economic policies – repackaged as “radical” – which have failed our young people who make up almost two thirds of the 9 million South Africans without work.

The President spoke at lengths about “radical” economic transformation, yet his SONA was anything but radical. The ANC’s “radical economic transformation” is racialised, divisive and anti-poor, designed to serve and empower the elite, the connected few, and the top 1% in his own party.

The ANC’s idea of radical economic transformation will only divide us further and take us backwards as a country. We must stand up to the ANC.

Change is coming, if we work together now.

We have this morning instructed our lawyers to file an application in the Western Cape High Court seeking a declaration that the deployment of SANDF members on the Precinct for non-ceremonial purposes was unconstitutional and unlawful, so as to ensure the gradual securitisation and militarisation of Parliament is halted once and for all.

The presence of the South African National Defence Force, in a way that far exceeded a mere ceremonial role, can never be tolerated again. Armed Military Police, with live ammunition, on the precinct of Parliament is completely untenable in a Constitutional democracy. Further, the excessive use of force by the Parliamentary security forces, the use of pepper spray in the public gallery, and the Speaker’s flouting of proper procedure for the expulsion of Members from the Chamber; should all be declared unlawful and unconstitutional.

Our court action is to ensure that the integrity of parliament is restored, and that we can make the work of Parliament about the people of South Africa once more. It ought to be an institution in which we can fight for the poor and the excluded. And an institution which vigorously holds power to account.

We know that it was not our members who were expelled last night. Despite this, it is still of concern to us. As the ANC becomes increasingly desperate to cling to power, the distinction between our Members and other opposition Members in the eyes of the security forces becomes less relevant. We must all defend each other in the dangerous period ahead, and we must work together to unseat this venal government.

Over the coming weeks I will personally be visiting dozens of towns to take this message to where it counts the most: the homes of South Africans. I want to tell them about the DA’s commitment to improving the life chances of a generation of young black South Africans who have been let down and locked out by the ANC. My mission for 2017 is to take our ideas for rescuing this lost generation to every corner of the country, and to discuss it with those most affected by the failure of this Parliament to do its job.

This year’s State of the Nation Address will go down in history as a black mark on our young democracy. From here, the DA is focused on one thing only: unseating the ANC. We must do it now, before it is too late.