Zuma stands by land expropriation position

President Jacob Zuma took a strong stand at the weekend’s national executive committee (NEC) meeting in Irene in Gauteng, defending his position on the issue of land expropriation without compensation, and challenging his critics to read the ANC’s 2012 conference resolutions if they disagreed with his views. City Press says Zuma had ‘set the record straight’ by ‘explaining where the policy comes from and calling those who have been criticising him in the media to order’. ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize and head of the economic transformation subcommittee Enoch Godongwana were among those who had described recent talk of land expropriation without compensation as ‘populist’ and ‘playing to the gallery’. An NEC member sympathetic to Zuma said the President concluded that ‘talk of populism was an indicator that the people do not read (ANC) conference resolutions, and that is why they do not implement them’.