ANCYL: 'We want Zuma'

2005-11-28 13:40

Johannesburg - Jacob Zuma should still become president of the ANC, the ANC Youth League said on Monday.

The ANCYL would continue to canvass the relevant structures on the matter, league president Fikile Mbalula said in Johannesburg.

This follows statements by the SACP and Cosatu that they'd never said they wanted Zuma to be the president of the ANC.

There was no reason yet for the league to change its position on the succession debate, Mbalula said.

Although Zuma would go to trial on corruption charges and was facing an allegation of rape, he should be considered innocent until proven otherwise in court, he said.

The ANC will decide who should become its next president in 2007. The ANCYL believes the president of the party should be the president of the country.

Asked if Zuma was charged with rape would the ANCYL accept his standing down as the ANC's deputy president, Mbalula said: "When that happens, we will pronounce on that."

Judge incapable of being impartial

According to the party's constitution, Zuma could be accused of bringing the party into disrepute.

The National Prosecuting Authority is currently studying a docket from police on the rape allegations. It has to decide whether Zuma should be prosecuted.

Zuma goes to trial for corruption in July. This follows Judge Hilary Squires finding there was a "generally corrupt" relationship between him and his former financial adviser Schabir Shaik.

After the judgment, many of Zuma's supporters including the ANCYL, accused Squires of being an old Rhodesian apartheid judge incapable of being impartial.

Asked if the ANCYL would accept the judge chosen for Zuma's trial and his judgment, Mbalula said the league would deal with his credentials at the beginning of the trial.

He said because Zuma's trial was so high profile, he was sure all decisions taken on the matter, including who should be the judge, would be done so that "whatever form of criticism will not find the light of day".

The league once again criticised the media for its manner of reporting on Zuma.

It is illegal to identify a rape victim in the media. A rape accused may not be identified until he has pleaded to the charge.

Both the alleged victim, and Zuma have, however, been identified in the media. The league was outraged "at this sort of reporting which seeks to project the deputy president as guilty before being tried by any court of law", Mbalula said.

He said the media's handling of the allegations would put pressure on investigators to take a particular position.

He accused the media of undermining the rule of law and attempting to turn the country into a banana republic.

- SAPA