Former President Jacob Zuma is taking his battle with the African National Congress (ANC) to the courts, challenging his 2024 expulsion from the party he once led and belonged to for 65 years.
Zuma, now at the helm of the breakaway uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, filed legal papers contesting the ANC’s decision, which came after he campaigned for the MK Party during the May 2024 general elections—a move the ANC said violated its constitution and party rules.
In a fiery statement, Zuma dismissed the ANC’s disciplinary process as illegitimate, saying, “My loyalty lies with the real ANC — not the puppets and sellouts who have hijacked its name.”
The MK Party, formed in late 2023, has thrown its weight behind Zuma, calling the court challenge a stand for political justice and historical truth, and portraying Zuma as a custodian of the ANC’s original revolutionary values.
The ANC, on the other hand, has maintained that its disciplinary processes were fair and necessary to preserve party unity and discipline, especially amid rising tensions and vote-splitting threats posed by the MK Party.
The court is yet to issue a ruling, but the case underscores the deepening rift between Zuma and the ANC, a conflict that has reshaped South Africa’s political terrain.
Analysts say the legal battle could have broader implications—not just for Zuma’s political future, but for the strength and credibility of the ANC itself in a post-election landscape marked by fractures and coalition uncertainty.
