President Jacob Zuma’s future as the leader of the ANC remains in the balance as the party’s national executive committee extended until Monday a meeting that’s considering a motion for him to step down as the head of the ruling party.
Tourism minister Derek Hanekom proposed the motion on Saturday, the Johannesburg-based City Press newspaper reported, citing people within the party it didn’t identify.
ANC spokesman Zizi Kodwa confirmed the extension of the weekend meeting in a statement published Sunday on Twitter.
Zuma, 74, has faced calls to quit since the nation’s top court ruled in March that he violated his oath by refusing to repay taxpayer money spent on the renovation of his private home.
Pressure has mounted since the graft ombudsman released a report on 2 November that implied Zuma may have let members of the Gupta family, who are in business with Zuma’s son, influence cabinet appointments, and called for a judicial inquiry commission to determine whether there had been any wrongdoing.
Zuma and the Guptas deny intentionally violating any laws. — (c) 2016 Bloomberg LP