Zuma's demise

They say when the people have spoken there is nothing that one can relatively do. Even the incumbent president of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa reiterated this fact as he is very much fond of saying the voice of the people is the voice of God.

Its barely two months now since one of the world's oldest statesman thus, the former president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe rendered in his resignation after the people of Zimbabwe had said it was time for him to relinquish his absolute powers.

Nevertheless, it was unseemly imperative for South Africa's former president Jacob Zuma to take heed of the memo from his counterpart in Zimbabwe as he probably thought it was just a bluff but he soon realized it wasn't.

2008 was the year Zuma took the reins of the ANC after his predecessor Thabo Mbeki was recalled from the presidential office by his party the African National Congress (ANC).

Zuma went on to win the presidential election in 2009 and that's when his journey started. Many South African castigated him for not being academically sound. Regardless he soldiered on especially because of his blue eyed boy who was then ANC youth league president, Julius Malema. Five years down the line his former blue eyed boy Malema, was now pelting him with lawsuits through his political party the Economic Freedom Front (EFF) which he formed as a result of misunderstandings with his former leader.

2013 was probably the spark of Zuma's demise. Zuma was under the scope for having transformed his house in the rural area of Inkandla into a masterpiece through state funds which were uncounted for. The EFF through its leader Malema preyed on this issue like a hungry hyena such that the issue attracted other opposition parties and Zuma eventually paid back the money that was used for the renovations of his residence.

Four years later after having wavered a number of lawsuits that were filed against him primarily through the buffer of the ANC the issue of state capture arose, with the Gupta family allegedly behind the state capture. For many years the Gupta family had been known to be hand in glove with Zuma but nothing had been relatively done.

Until in 2017 when a number of state officials including ministers were said to be under the scope of the Gupta family. Again the EFF preyed on this issue fingering Zuma as the main contender of the shenanigan. This even saw some of the ANC members shifting their allegiance with Zuma especially before last year's ANC congress where Cyril Ramaphosa was enacted as ANC's new president.

Now in 2018 the opposition especially the EFF turned the issue into a bonfire and called for the immediate resignation of the president either through an impeachment as in accordance with section 89 of the constitution or a vote of no confidence through the ANC.

As a result of this, the ANC was left with no choice but to recall Zuma and on the 13th of February the ANC's secretary general Ace Magashule and his deputy Jesse Duarte delivered the letter of resignation at Zuma's residence in Pretoria but it seemed as if he wasn't going to take heed of the letter until on Wednesday the 14th in the evening when he called in a press briefing to announce his resignation.

Much is now to be seen where Zuma's final fate lies as the opposition parties are willing to uncover at least 783 lawsuits that include rape, money laundering, fraud, corruption and many others that were 'allegedly' swept under the carpet when Zuma was president. In line with this, EFF's president Julius Malema is calling for the dissolution of parliament and early elections as he cited incumbent president Cyril Ramaphosa as a baton bearer of Zuma.

Zuma now becomes the third president who did not finish all the two terms starting with South Africa's first president Nelson Mandela who decided to step down after only one term and Thabo Mbeki who was recalled from his presidential post in 2008 by the ANC.