By Zukile Majova
Political Editor
Former president Jacob Zuma has called for the reduction of provinces from nine back to four, as he looks for a route back to power with his breakaway uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) Party.
This is not because it would save money for the state, which uses billions of rands to run various provincial legislatures, but as a strategy to ensure blacks don’t lose power in South Africa.
Zuma’s frustration is that the DA, a predominantly white party, appears unbeatable in the Western Cape.
He proposed that the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape should once again be one province, the Cape Province.
This way, millions of ANC voters from the EC would dilute the DA vote and return power to the ANC.
The EC has over 3.34 million registered voters.
“There were four provinces in South Africa, but now there are nine, and foreigners want to claim one of them as their own.
“We will then be left with eight,” Zuma told thousands of his supporters in Pietermaritzburg.
“When I say we must win with a big majority, I want us to fix our country.”
Even though Zuma’s party is growing in popularity in KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and parts of Gauteng, its most important policy positions remain a mystery.
His comments come amid various controversial attempts by the municipal demarcation board to shift municipal boundaries, even when they are guaranteed to shift control of some municipalities and undermine the will of the voters.
In Umngeni Municipality, the only DA-run municipality, a slight shift of the boundary to include a few ANC-dominated voting districts would have a real potential to unseat Mayor Chris Pappas.
“The current arrangement (of nine provinces) has resulted in the Western Cape now having one party that keeps winning the elections there.
“They now think that is their country. If we say Western Cape and Eastern Cape come together, we will then have a majority that will defend the Western Cape,” said Zuma.
Various groups including the Cape Independence Advocacy Group have proposed a secession of the Western Cape from the rest of the country.
Pictured above: Jacob Zuma.
Image source: X
