South Africa: Phosa's Possible Motives in Defending Malema
Karima Brown
6 May 2010
Johannesburg — SEVERAL explanations have been proffered as to why African National Congress (ANC) treasurer-general Mathews Phosa is representing youth league president Julius Malema in his face-off with the party's disciplinary committee, which has put the youth league leader on a collision course with President Jacob Zuma.
On the face of things, Phosa, a trained lawyer, and an ANC member in good standing, fits the bill to represent any ANC cadre who is in trouble with the party - a right that extends even to the most incorrigible.
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After all, lawyers are chosen by their clients, not the other way round. Phosa's place in the Malema camp is consistent with his code of ethics as a lawyer.
Assuming that Malema asked Phosa to come to his aid in his hour of need, Phosa the lawyer could hardly refuse.
But if the ANC's six most senior officials are united in their decision to take Malema to task, Phosa's place at Malema's side does muddy the waters.
More importantly, in a deeply divided ruling party, where private financial interests are fast replacing principle, it is safe to say that nothing in the ANC should be taken at face value.
Moreover, the ANC's electoral conference in 2012 also provides pointers as to Phosa's potential motives. Phosa's stance also points to deepening fault lines in the brittle Zuma coalition and fractures at the top echelons in the ANC.
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In trying to understand Phosa's motives in the Malema matter, one ANC insider says Zizi Kodwa's infamous analogy when he referred to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) as the "dog" which had to be "beaten" hard enough so that its "owner" came out - during Zuma's rape trial back in 2006 - captures how some now interpret Phosa's connection to Malema.
"Just like the NPA was a tool used by those who conspired against JZ back then, so many ambitious ANC leaders now use Julius as a convenient conduit in their struggle for power," the insider said.
The analogy gains currency if one considers money and private interests have superceded ideology as the glue that holds the elite in the ANC together.
The youth league's patronage network, spawned through its Lembede investment arm and which extends to parastatals, underpins this reality.
In fact, as the ANC finds itself increasingly under pressure to explain the myriad ways in which it benefits from lucrative state tenders through connected individuals at provincial and national level and in state-owned enterprises such as Eskom, Phosa's role as treasurer gains stature.
It puts him at the epicentre of the party's opaque finances, which remain out of the public eye.
So assured is Phosa that some businesspeople, especially contractors who do business with the party, have reportedly complained to Zuma of his "bullying" tactics.
Phosa is no stranger to the cutthroat world of big business. Nor is he politically unambitious.
the ANC's Stellenbosch conference in 2002, Phosa only withdrew his challenge to Zuma for the post of deputy president of the ANC at the 11th hour, another indication of his preparedness to challenge for power even if not formally endorsed by the ANC grandees.
Political analyst with the Centre for Policy Studies Aubrey Matshiqi says Phosa has opened himself up to an interpretation that he is siding with Malema in what is perceived to be a battle against Zuma.
"Some may well ask, if Phosa contested the post of deputy president against Zuma in Stellenbosch and was forced to withdraw only at the last minute, did his support in the contest between Zuma and Thabo Mbeki in 2007 extend to support for Zuma as head of state? Many will probably say no."
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While it is clear that the ANC's top six officials are far from united over how to deal with the Malema matter, neither Zuma nor Malema appears to have overwhelming support within the ANC over this issue. This means neither can take undue political risks on how to resolve the standoff.
Matshiqi says for Malema the question is whether he wants to be on a collision course with Zuma when his own youth league is divided over his leadership. "So Malema must calculate whether he wants to fight political battles on too many fronts."
Zuma, on the other hand, has to contend with leading a divided ANC. This means that, in the absence of overwhelming support for his move against Malema, Zuma must open himself to the possibility of being humiliated if some of his allies, line up behind Malema, this time round.
With the balance of forces this fluid, the likes of Phosa will be keen to fast-track their chances of seizing control.
Karima Brown
6 May 2010
Johannesburg — SEVERAL explanations have been proffered as to why African National Congress (ANC) treasurer-general Mathews Phosa is representing youth league president Julius Malema in his face-off with the party's disciplinary committee, which has put the youth league leader on a collision course with President Jacob Zuma.
On the face of things, Phosa, a trained lawyer, and an ANC member in good standing, fits the bill to represent any ANC cadre who is in trouble with the party - a right that extends even to the most incorrigible.
GA_googleFillSlot( "AllAfrica_Story_InsetA" );
After all, lawyers are chosen by their clients, not the other way round. Phosa's place in the Malema camp is consistent with his code of ethics as a lawyer.
Assuming that Malema asked Phosa to come to his aid in his hour of need, Phosa the lawyer could hardly refuse.
But if the ANC's six most senior officials are united in their decision to take Malema to task, Phosa's place at Malema's side does muddy the waters.
More importantly, in a deeply divided ruling party, where private financial interests are fast replacing principle, it is safe to say that nothing in the ANC should be taken at face value.
Moreover, the ANC's electoral conference in 2012 also provides pointers as to Phosa's potential motives. Phosa's stance also points to deepening fault lines in the brittle Zuma coalition and fractures at the top echelons in the ANC.
GA_googleFillSlot( "AllAfrica_Story_InsetB" );
In trying to understand Phosa's motives in the Malema matter, one ANC insider says Zizi Kodwa's infamous analogy when he referred to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) as the "dog" which had to be "beaten" hard enough so that its "owner" came out - during Zuma's rape trial back in 2006 - captures how some now interpret Phosa's connection to Malema.
"Just like the NPA was a tool used by those who conspired against JZ back then, so many ambitious ANC leaders now use Julius as a convenient conduit in their struggle for power," the insider said.
The analogy gains currency if one considers money and private interests have superceded ideology as the glue that holds the elite in the ANC together.
The youth league's patronage network, spawned through its Lembede investment arm and which extends to parastatals, underpins this reality.
In fact, as the ANC finds itself increasingly under pressure to explain the myriad ways in which it benefits from lucrative state tenders through connected individuals at provincial and national level and in state-owned enterprises such as Eskom, Phosa's role as treasurer gains stature.
It puts him at the epicentre of the party's opaque finances, which remain out of the public eye.
So assured is Phosa that some businesspeople, especially contractors who do business with the party, have reportedly complained to Zuma of his "bullying" tactics.
Phosa is no stranger to the cutthroat world of big business. Nor is he politically unambitious.
the ANC's Stellenbosch conference in 2002, Phosa only withdrew his challenge to Zuma for the post of deputy president of the ANC at the 11th hour, another indication of his preparedness to challenge for power even if not formally endorsed by the ANC grandees.
Political analyst with the Centre for Policy Studies Aubrey Matshiqi says Phosa has opened himself up to an interpretation that he is siding with Malema in what is perceived to be a battle against Zuma.
"Some may well ask, if Phosa contested the post of deputy president against Zuma in Stellenbosch and was forced to withdraw only at the last minute, did his support in the contest between Zuma and Thabo Mbeki in 2007 extend to support for Zuma as head of state? Many will probably say no."
Relevant Links
Southern Africa
South Africa
While it is clear that the ANC's top six officials are far from united over how to deal with the Malema matter, neither Zuma nor Malema appears to have overwhelming support within the ANC over this issue. This means neither can take undue political risks on how to resolve the standoff.
Matshiqi says for Malema the question is whether he wants to be on a collision course with Zuma when his own youth league is divided over his leadership. "So Malema must calculate whether he wants to fight political battles on too many fronts."
Zuma, on the other hand, has to contend with leading a divided ANC. This means that, in the absence of overwhelming support for his move against Malema, Zuma must open himself to the possibility of being humiliated if some of his allies, line up behind Malema, this time round.
With the balance of forces this fluid, the likes of Phosa will be keen to fast-track their chances of seizing control.
( Business Day )
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