South Africa as a developing nation under the rule of law took a major blow today. We are now closer to a Banana Republic than we have ever been. Zuma and the ANC manipulated and intimidated everyone from the Constitutional Court (through Zuma’s mate Hlope) to the National Prosecuting Authority into submission. They have now clearly set the example that if you are the Chief you are above the law. Like Idi Amien in Uganda, Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe; Charles Taylor in Liberia and indeed most of Africa. Tribalism still reigns supreme!
Even more upsetting is that despite Zuma’s strongly alleged corruption charges, the systemic corruption of the ANC and civil service under the ANC and everything else that is going wrong with South Africa, most blacks are still expected to vote for the ANC. To these people I say that in this Democracy you will get only what you deserve. You must know that you will elect Zuma, a more-than-likely thief, to be your president. The money that he and his cronies have stolen and will steal is your money. It is the money that you could have built a house or educated your children with. You are the ones that will stay in this land that Zuma and the ANC rapes & pillages till nothing works and there is no Justice.
To the people that vote for Jacob Zuma I say that you will never be treated as equals by the West if you are too stupid and/or cowardly to vote for Jacob Zuma. You will always be the world’s basket case. You will always have to beg if you don’t have the guts and intellectual capability to vote for someone other than the Big Fat Lazy Chief.
The people that vote for the ANC (this time around) represent the failure of Africa; intellectually challenged, tribalist, racist, gutless and weak.
Note: This post may seem racially motivated, but it is precisely not. It addresses Black weaknesses in this country simply because our political landscape is determined by Black voters. Besides that very few Whites are expected to vote for Zuma. If I wrote this blog 20 years ago I would have written about the (now obvious) White weaknesses in this country.
Attie Heunis's Journey 
ja, ek stem 100% saam sad day indeed! Dit verduidelik net weer die psyche van Africa hulle kannie wegkom van korrupsie en is maar slawe van diktatorskap – bewys deur die hele geskiedenis van Afrika. Die ergste is as jy met die “locals” praat (ie ons werkers) is dit asof hulle heeltemal verblind is en die houding is well, everybody can make a mistake and he has changed and we cannot judge him. Hallo wake up and smell the empty cup of coffee u wont have in 5 years from now!!
Ek se net ons kan land uit gaan, maar waar gaan julle heen as jy die kruisie op die verkeerde plek gemaak het!!
Yes, a country deserves the leader it gets (USA is a point in this case).
I think your remarks settles well into the assumptions of a lot of South Africans who can roughly judge on the ramifications of this acquittal.
However, the rule of law has some very basic principles like ‘audi alteram partem’ or ‘nemo iudex in re sua’ – another is our legal system is that no one is guilty unless proven. You don’t know whether he was guilty, so it appears, neither could the bench of judges on the basis of the evidence laid infront of them.
The downside is that given the publicity and profile of this case and the rape-accusation posted against Zuma, he will carry the tainted image with him for the rest of his term. Not only locally, but more specifically globally in a time where SA and Africa needs strond, responsible and pragmatic leadership. If he is a true leader he will realise that there is a bigger picture than local politicking and take a step back.
I am afraid we all know the outcome of this.
couldnt agree more!