KwaZulu-Natal ANC secretary general has come out gun-blazing, accusing former president Jacob Zuma, who is now the leader of uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, of taking voters for a ride.
Bheki Mtolo, who has gained notoriety for his sharp tongue and controversial comments, made the remarks in Kokstad. He was addressing ANC members in the area, where he once served as mayor.
“La e-KZN sidlalwa ikhehla. Lidlala ngathi ngoba liyazi ukuthi siyashesha ukukhohlwa.” Meaning “(In KZN, we are taken for a ride by an old man, he does so because he knows we forget easily,” Mtolo charged.
Failed when he had opportunity to lead
He accused Zuma of being disingenuous to suddenly think he and his party have solutions for the country. This because he failed when he was given an opportunity to lead.
“How should we trust you? Because for nine years, we believed you when you told us that the ANC was our only home and hope. But you’re now singing a different tune,” said Mtolo to a loud applause.
He explained that the former head of state was now preaching land redistribution and job creation. As if he was never the president.
“Politicians are manipulative because they know voters forget easily. When he was the president the land was in the white hands and he didn’t do anything about that,” he said.
There’s no love lost between Mtolo and Zuma since the former president broke ranks to form the MK party. Zuma’s new party went on to cause an electoral upset for the once governing party.
Leaving ANC was ‘good riddance’
Last year, he said Zuma’s leaving the ANC was good riddance because he was a liability.
“The only big project he did in Nkandla was building his home, hence he never got any support from Nkandla. People from Nkandla never related to Zuma. Because they saw him as a man for himself and his family,” Mtolo said at the time.
He also pointed out that Zuma should be apologising to the ANC and Ramaphosa. Because he was given a strong ANC by Thabo Mbeki, but he gave Ramaphosa a weak ANC.
Zuma, through the MK Party, is credited for masterminding the downfall of the ANC. In KwaZulu-Natal it plummeted from 54% to a dismal 17%. The MK Party became the biggest party in the province, receiving close to 2 million votes.
