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Fedusa calls for Zuma to step down after downgrade to junk status

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Fedusa general secretary Dennis George encouraged members to participate in Friday’s march for South Africa and in any follow-up protest marches leading up to the tabling of a vote of no confidence against President Jacob Zuma. Picture: Michelle Bao
Fedusa general secretary Dennis George encouraged members to participate in Friday’s march for South Africa and in any follow-up protest marches leading up to the tabling of a vote of no confidence against President Jacob Zuma. Picture: Michelle Bao

The Federation of Unions of South Africa has joined the growing number of individuals, organisations and unions calling for the resignation of President Jacob Zuma following his controversial Cabinet reshuffle.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the trade union federation’s management committee announced its official support of, and participation in, Friday’s nationwide mass protests.

“Enough is enough. We have had enough of this government and this president specifically,” said Fedusa general secretary Dennis George.

“The president’s continuous attack on the minister of finance has undermined his own country.”

According to George, Zuma’s decision to fire former finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas directly affected Tuesday’s downgrade of South Africa’s investment rating by credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s.

“So if Zuma is removed from office, there could be a big boost in a couple of weeks,” George said. “Rating agencies and investors will feel comfortable with South Africa. It will show that South Africans can work together peacefully to address its problems.”

Thapelo Tselapedi, an assistant lecturer in the department of politics and international relations at the University of Johannesburg, acknowledged that Zuma’s Cabinet reshuffle could have created nervousness among rating agencies. But, according to Tselapedi, removing Zuma from office was not enough to change the country’s investment ranking.

“Rating agencies like S&P are quite careful and are concerned with political institutions, so the issues are systemic,” Tselapedi said.

“Removing one person will unlikely cause any change. We will have to wait until December to see how the ANC responds collectively.”

But in the meantime, in a media briefing on Tuesday morning, labour federation Cosatu also called for Zuma to step down.

Read: We no longer believe in Zuma’s leadership abilities – Cosatu

“Cosatu no longer believes that the president is the right person to unite and lead the movement, the alliance and the country,” Cosatu general secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali said.

“We think that after all his undeniable contribution to both the movement and government, the time has arrived for him to step down and allow the country to be led forward by a new collective at the government level.”

Yet Cosatu remains allied to the ANC.

“We are not opposed to the ANC,” said Sizwe Pamla, Cosatu’s national spokesperson.

“We are unhappy with the president’s mismanagement of the economy because it is taking us down a slippery slope.”

And despite participating in the Democratic Alliance-organised “march for change” on Friday, Fedusa continues to be politically non-aligned.

“This is not a political issue. It is a South African issue and we appeal to all our members of Parliament in the National Assembly to put partisan politics aside and vote for South Africa when the motion of no confidence against President Zuma is tabled in Parliament,” said Fedusa president Godfrey Selematsela.

But in the event that Zuma is not removed, Fedusa will embark on what George calls a “campaign of Fridays”.

“Every Friday, we will have rolling mass action and civil disobedience, including the withholding of toll fees,” said George.

“No government can function without money and this government gets huge amounts of money, so if the government does not want to fall, we will make it fall.”

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