Former president Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party says it is unconcerned by a clause in the Constitution that will bar Zuma from standing as a public office-bearer after the general elections.    

This comes after more than a month since the party, said to be Zuma’s brainchild, launched in Soweto on 16 December, Reconciliation Day.

Although MK has not officially confirmed its presidential candidate, the party said the will of the people would prevail.

“If the people want Jacob  Zuma on the ballot, that’s exactly what will happen. President Zuma will be on the ballot and will lead the country,” MK interim spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndlela said.

The party would not be drawn further into commenting on who its candidate would be. Speculation has been rife that the party was created as a home for Zuma’s son Duduzane’s presidential aspirations and as the former president’s project to get back at those in the ANC who he believes turned on him.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Jacob Zuma’s MK spin-off faces uphill battle to win support 

Section 47

On Thursday, Electoral Commission (IEC) commissioner Janet Love said Zuma’s “candidacy could be impeded” by his previous conviction.  

In June 2021, Zuma was convicted and sentenced to 15 months in prison for contempt of court after failing to appear before the State Capture Commission, chaired by now Chief Justice Raymond Zondo. 

After serving two months of his sentence, Zuma was released on medical parole in 2021 by former Correctional Services head Arthur Fraser, whose decision was challenged in court by the opposition Democratic Alliance, the Helen Suzman Foundation and other NGOs.

This challenge was upheld by courts up to the Constitutional Court and in August 2023 Zuma was expected to return to prison to serve his sentence before he, with thousands of other inmates, was released on remission. 

Section 47 of the Constitution stipulates that citizens who qualify to vote for the National Assembly are eligible to be members of the National Assembly, “except ­anyone who, after this section took effect, is convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months’ imprisonment without the option of a fine, either in the Republic, or outside the Republic…”

It adds, “No one may be regarded as having been sentenced until an appeal against the conviction or sentence has been determined, or until the time for an appeal has expired.” 

The disqualification under the clause ends five years after the sentence has been completed, meaning Zuma would be able to stand for public office only in the next election.

MK defiant

Ndlela said, “From where we are, having assessed section 42 of the Constitution, there is nothing there that bars President Zuma even if they were to take us to court on that issue, from campaigning and representing the party, so we are not concerned.”

He said MK would challenge the IEC in court if it barred Zuma from contesting, on the basis that Zuma never appeared in court and was incarcerated for contempt of court.

Speaking about Zuma’s conviction, Ndlela argued, “It has nothing to do with criminality. The Constitution refers more to issues of criminality than civil cases.”

Zuma’s chances of holding public office could also be impeded if he is found guilty in the Arms Deal court case. He is facing multiple counts of corruption relating to bribes he is alleged to have taken from the French arms manufacturing company Thales for the 1999 Arms Deal worth more than $1-billion.  

He has, however, been involved in protracted court interventions — including a bid to secure the removal of the prosecutor in the case — which have delayed proceedings. His latest bid was denied in the Supreme Court of Appeal in December 2023.

Ndlela slammed the IEC for failing to communicate its decision directly to the party. This is despite the fact that the party had not told the IEC whether Zuma would be one of its candidates.

Constitutional law expert Pierre de Vos said Zuma was disqualified from standing for election to Parliament.

“If he can’t run, he can’t be elected to Parliament. If he can’t be elected to Parliament, he cannot be elected President, as the Constitution says the President must be elected from among the 400 members of Parliament. (Once elected, the President stops being a member of Parliament.)”

The MK party has footprints in four provinces rich in ANC voters. Experts have predicted that while it could have an impact on the ANC’s election results, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal, it was unlikely to garner more than 5% of the vote. DM