The fallout from last week’s story that ANC Secretary-General Ace Magashule and several Jacob Zuma allies had met the ex-prez in a Durban hotel to plot Cyril Ramaphosa’s ousting, has shown how divided the party still is when it comes to Zuma.
Magashule has now admitted to the meeting, but says it was to discuss party matters and that the other Zuma allies were in the hotel at the same time purely by coincidence or for separate meetings.
Meanwhile, the ANC first said it didn’t know about the meeting, but wouldn’t investigate it anyway.
But now the party’s chief whip wants an investigation as a matter of urgency and the Top Six want a briefing from Magashule.
It seems everybody is tripping over their tongues over this, proving yet again that Zuma still wields a lot of power in the party.
The most important question is, of course, why one of the ruling party’s top bosses is meeting with his former party leader, without the knowledge of his current leader.
And Zuma himself is speaking in confusing tongues when it comes to responding to allegations against him before the State Capture Commission of Inquiry.
In the same week, he told a gathering that state capture is a made-up term, while he wrote to the commission stressing his support for its work.
And after just about every bit of evidence implicated him directly or indirectly, he has responded - without a hint of irony or sarcasm - that he wants to participate meaningfully, but needs to apply his mind first.