What does the “Freedom Day coup” — in which former SA president Jacob Zuma overthrew and expelled the MK Party’s founding leader Jabulani Khumalo and four senior members — mean?
Is this the beginning of the end for the new party, as some speculate? Does it matter?
The party’s internal shenanigans are of little importance except for the fact that the MK Party is expected to play a pivotal role in coalition governments that may be forged in KwaZulu-Natal and perhaps even in Gauteng.
Further, it was in Zuma’s name that the July 2021 riots, which led to the deaths of hundreds of people, were carried out.
So, the internal workings of this new political vehicle matter for SA’s security and for the future of our country’s governance.
There are several takeaways from the party’s internal coup at the weekend.
First, one should not fool oneself into thinking that the expulsion of Khumalo and his four comrades will hurt the MK Party significantly.
As I have written here before, Khumalo and his comrades were always mere tools in Zuma’s hands.
He instructed them to register the party, and they dutifully did.
Their doing so in September last year caused no waves.
Even the ANC ignored the entire thing even though its logos, names and histories were blatantly stolen.
It was only on December 16, when Zuma announced his alleged “support” for it, that the MK Party became a real, live entity.
It was always a Zuma family organisation and a Zuma personality cult.
So, the many people flocking to the MK Party are really Zuma supporters and have no loyalty to the MK Party were it to be a real entity on its own.
These are people who don’t care about party structures (MK has none), about collective leadership (MK has none), about principles or ethics (MK has none), about policies (Zuma makes these up on the hop) or any of the key elements of making political choices.
The MK Party has co-opted “leaders”, such as former police minister in the Zuma era Nathi “Firepool” Nhleko, who are happy to endorse the looting that would be permissible in a structure or government dominated by Zuma.
The party has a support base and a voting pool that would be happy with leaders who are implicated in the state capture report.
That is why they want Zuma.
However, even Zuma knows that more incidents such as this latest one could lead to serious damage to him as even these diehard loyalists are confused by constant upheaval and turbulence in the party.
That’s why I would bet that Zuma wants the election to come around as quickly as possible so that the party can get the votes it already has in, give him the leverage he needs through a kingmaker position in KwaZulu-Natal and forget about the voting fodder after May 29.
They will have outlived their usefulness.
So, many in the ANC may be gloating at Zuma’s party’s infighting, but I would advise them to put the champagne back on ice.
It’s not over for the Nkandla man yet. His base is still pretty much intact because he projects himself as “strong and decisive”.
What’s been interesting is seeing how Zuma continues to use his now-very-familiar battle tactics.
For example, wherever Zuma goes, there is a conspiracy.
When he was in the ANC, he was always alleging that there was a conspiracy against him.
The man is never responsible for anything. It’s always other people’s machinations, not his own doings, that cause trouble for him and those around him.
He is playing that card again.
In the statement issued by MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela announcing the expulsion of Khumalo and the others, he said: “At a meeting held by the national leadership core, and in light of the attempts by external forces to destabilise the MK Party, whose aim is to advance a revolution of the people, the national leadership core has taken a decision to expel these comrades.”
What attempts are there to destabilise this party and by who, one wonders.
Zuma has claimed hundreds of times that there have been attempts on his life, that there are conspiracies against him, that he has information about informants in the ANC, and many other tall stories.
He has never stepped forward with a shred of evidence of any of this.
Now he claims that Khumalo and his fellow leaders were engaged in destabilisation of the party.
Don’t expect him to provide evidence. There isn’t any.
The statement also mentions a “leadership core”. What exactly is the MK Party’s leadership “core”? There isn’t such a thing.
People are brought in from the ANC and elevated to high positions, and then they are discarded just as quickly if they don’t genuflect in front of Zuma.
There is no leadership “core”. There is only Zuma and his family.
Whatever one might say, though, this family business is still on track to attract significant support in KwaZulu-Natal unless something truly dramatic emerges in the next four weeks.