March against Zuma's crony capitalism – Vavi

Trade unionist Zwelinzima Vavi has blamed President Jacob Zuma for the country’s crisis and urged South Africans to join the protest marches being organised against him.

The former secretary-general of Cosatu was one of four panellists invited by the South African Association of Public Administration and Management to speak on the theme "Is the post-apartheid state unravelling?"

The event took place at the Tshwane University of Technology, at the Business School on the Metro Skinner Campus. The other panellists were the head of the faculty of political economy at Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection, Mcebisi Ndletyana; ANC activist Magdalene Moonsamy; and Andile Mngxitama, Black First Land First leader.

Vavi said: “Unemployment levels have gone to unbelievable levels. At least 9 million people in South Africa are unemployed. We have become the most unequal society in the world.

“There are 25 million of our people living below the poverty line. There are 14 million who go to bed at night without having eaten anything. That is what we call an unravelling. There is a political crisis.”

Vavi accused Zuma of representing crony capitalism that allowed him, his family and friends to amass massive wealth at the expense of the interests of ordinary people.

“We are in junk status, thanks to the irresponsible and reckless actions of the president.”

Ndletyana said Zuma became president only because the ANC wanted to get rid of former president Thabo Mbeki.

Zuma lacked the legitimacy and credibility that Mbeki and Nelson Mandela had at the beginning of their terms, and had to gain it through patronage.

But Moonsamy accused former finance minister Pravin Gordhan of leading the country to junk status as far back as 2014 during his first term as finance minister.

“That minister knew that there was a junk status coming. He is responsible for South Africa being the most unequal society in 2014.”

Moonsamy accused South Africans of having short memories. History also played a part in why South Africa was in this crisis.

Mngxitama defended Zuma, saying he had every right to hire and fire whoever he wanted in his cabinet.

He called Gordhan "the prime minister of white monopoly capitalism", who made sure that white corruption was protected and defended. Zuma fired him to stop him in his tracks.

Vavi and Mdletyana agreed that post-apartheid South Africa was unravelling, partly due Zuma’s poor leadership.

Moonsamy and Mngxitama, on the other hand, said they believed South Africa had been unravelling since the apartheid days.