Johannesburg - Former president Jacob Zuma’s controversial son Edward Zuma has called on the ANC leadership to protect Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane from vilification by the courts and senior party members.
Zuma junior, whose Zulu name is Muziwoxolo, had written an open letter to ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, and copied in KwaZulu-Natal provincial secretary Mdumiseni Ntuli and Musa Dladla regional secretary Tholi Gwala.
In the letter, which is dated August 10, 2019, Zuma who is an ANC member at the Msholozi Branch in Nkandla under the Musa Dladla Region said the ANC should take practical action to protect Mkhwebane.
“Comrade SG, our failure as a movement to vehemently oppose those forces, (particularly from within) waging a war against the PP, is seriously pitting the ANC against the populace and our principle objective that - The People Shall Govern!” wrote Zuma.
The Durban Equality Court had in December 2018 fined Zuma R60 000 after it had found him guilty of hate speech he had made against his father’s critics Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. The complaint had been launched by the Human Rights Commission on behalf of the two ministers.
The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria had earlier this week granted President Cyril Ramaphosa an interim order against implementing Mkhwebane's remedial action on her findings that the president had lied in parliament about not knowing that Bosasa had donated R500 000 to his ANC presidential campaign.
The same court had last month suspended Mkhwebane’s remedial order for Ramaphosa to discipline Gordhan following her finding that the minister was behind the creation of a Sars rogue unit when he was the commissioner.
“The current controversial judgments against the PP, are at our own instance ... we have become the enemy of the people in this regard.
“I wish to remind you and your colleagues in the NEC, that the PP only investigate complaints that are referred to her by members of the public and they are not self-generated, as it currently portrayed in the public discourse,” said Zuma.
He said Mkhwebane was right to make a finding on the CR17 campaign funding, and said those who are opposed to it were driving the ANC’s internal factional battle.
Earlier last month Mkhwebane wrote a letter to both Parliament Speaker Thandi Modise and Ramaphosa asking to be protected from public attacks she was receiving from MPs including Mineral and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe.
“I hope you (Magashule) will agree with me that the “Unity Project” as espoused by the Nasrec determination, is not working and requires an urgent self-examination and self-criticism (Hoping the upcoming NGC will give us time and space to do same),” Edward Zuma said.
Attempts to get comment from ANC national spokesperson Pule Mabe were unsuccessful.