Zuma survives latest Gupta-links salvo

President Jacob Zuma appears to have survived for the time being the latest revelations in the state capture saga, although there is every possibility the matter will soon be before the courts. Media reports last night suggested he and his supporters had faced down a bid by some members of the ANC's national executive committee to have him removed, vowing to see out his term of office, notes Legalbrief. He has survived despite a damning series of revelations published in City Press and the Sunday Times yesterday that show how the Gupta family sucked in Cabinet Ministers – Des van Rooyen, Faith Muthambi and Mosebenzi Zwane – and other highly-placed members of the Zuma administration into an intricate web of state-owned company capture. They also reveal that Zuma had an exit SA strategy in place. The claims, based on a series of leaked e-mails, follow hard on the heels of damning reports by the SA Council of Churches and a group of academics outlining alleged corrupt links between the Zuma and Gupta families. Denials of the latest revelations have come thick and fast, with the Guptas' lawyer labelling the reports as 'fake news'. Business Day, meanwhile, says it understands that after a two-day meeting, which ended yesterday, Zuma told the NEC in his closing address that he would not resign and that only ANC branches could remove him. He also suggested that ‘foreign agents’ were behind the bid to oust him. The call to step down was proposed by respected ANC intellectual Joel Netshitenzhe. This, notes the report, is the second NEC meeting in which calls were made for Zuma to leave office – but his backers are adamant that he should see out his term.

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