JOHANNESBURG – South Africa has experience yet another reshuffle at the hands of President Jacob Zuma.
The president reshuffled the cabinet for the second time without consulting the African National Congress’s top six.
There are claims that this is likely to deepen the fractured relations within the party leadership and also threaten the relationship with the tripartite alliance partners.
“The ANC top six was informed,” said party secretary general Gwede Mantashe on Tuesday when asked if Zuma had consulted them.
The country’s constitution gives the president the prerogative to reshuffle his cabinet, the ANC expects him to consult with its leadership and alliance partners.
Mantashe though refused to go into details of the meeting with Zuma when he informed them of his plans, his comments indicated that there was disapproval.
Mantashe was speaking at Luthuli House about an hour after the Presidency announced the reshuffle.
He said that it was a pity that Blade Nzimande, who is also the general secretary of the SACP, had been removed as minister of higher education.
This removal of Nzimande is said to bring tensions within alliances.
“We just had an alliance secretariat meeting after six months to try to put it back together again.
The reshuffling of GS of the SACP is going to undo the work done by the secretarial meeting, But it is not about individuals” Mantashe said.
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