DUDUZANE Zuma has plans to become the next president but would not say if he is doing so as a member of the ANC. Picture: SIMANGALISO NTSHANGASE
DURBAN - Duduzane Zuma, the son of former president Jacob Zuma, has urged the youth to vote next year to make a difference.
As part of his independently run election campaign, Zuma, 41, said the youth had the potential to turn their fortunes around by voting.
“The problem with young people is that they are quick to complain, but slow to take action. The simple test will be the 2024 elections; if people are serious about the change, they will come up and make the change by voting for the right party or an individual they believe will turn things around.
“Next year is the last opportunity to turn things around; if we miss this opportunity, we could never find another opportunity for transformation, said Zuma during an exclusive interview with the Sunday Tribune this week.
Zuma, who is hopeful of being a presidential candidate, would not reveal whether he was still a member of the ANC.
He said being on the ground for the past three years has been an interesting journey and he enjoyed interacting with people and addressing some of the issues they have faced.
“I’m confident that I will make a huge difference, I am looking forward to the future and coming up with solutions to most of the challenges faced by people of our country.
“Of course, I have the utmost respect for the ruling party and it played its part, but it is a new time now. This is me trying to make a difference, do what is in my power to build something new outside of the ANC.”
As the country approaches the second anniversary of the July unrest, Zuma said he empathised with families who lost their loved ones. The unrest broke out at the time his father was arrested and put in jail for being in contempt of court for not attending the Commission of Enquiry into State Capture, of which he was accused of being complicit to.
The riots resulted in 354 deaths, R50 billion in damages and 150 000 job losses.
“Death is an unfortunate incident to one’s life and we remember all those who lost their lives not only during the unrest, but everyday and everywhere across the country.
“We need to stop being people who always reflect on what has happened, but instead let us prevent bad things from happening. This is not a time for promises, but for action and we must hold accountable all those found guilty of such cases.
“These are the issues that require the youth to stand up and do something. It can’t be normal that our people are being killed like dogs every day, and no one is doing anything about it. It can’t be that people are living in darkness due to load shedding and no one is held accountable for that. We must do something,” he said.
When asked about whether he was still a member of the ANC, Zuma skirted around the answer and asked that we check with the party.
The ANC KZN provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo said that as far as he knew, Zuma was still a member and part of the province’s structure, and suggested that we confirm with him (Zuma) if that was still the case or not.
“I want to place it on record that if he still holds the membership for the ANC, and that if he by any chance wins the election next year, he will automatically be elected as the president of the ANC and of South Africa,” said Mtolo, hanging up the phone.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE