Another day, another MK Party (MKP) story. 😶 In case you missed it, the uMkhonto WeSizwe Party is a break-away faction that has blatantly ripped the branding of the ANC’s historic military wing. It was registered in September 2023 and fronted by disgraced former president Jacob Zuma. But it’s anyone’s guess whether they will make it to your ballot paper come May 29. Here are the issues:
1. Zuma’s eligibility to run
The Constitution disqualifies anyone with a criminal record from serving as a member of parliament (MP) for five years after being sentenced. You may remember Zuma’s conviction in 2021 for contempt of court around the state capture hearings, landing him with a 15-month prison sentence (even if he only served a fraction of that). In late March the IEC announced Zuma was therefore not eligible, but the MKP promptly took the matter to the electoral court. To everyone’s great surprise, the court overturned the IEC’s decision. Now, the IEC is approaching the highest court in the land, the Constitution Court, for an urgent hearing to effectively stop Zuma from qualifying. They have to tread carefully as an impartial body, noting: “This appeal is not intended to involve itself in the political field of play; it is rather to ensure free and fair elections.” The hearing is on May 10 – just weeks before the May 29 elections. 👀 The drama!
2. Zuma’s health
But besides Zuma’s eligibility to stand, can he literally… stand? There have been questions about Zuma’s health in recent weeks after several falls. The MKP has dismissed reports of his declining health, stating that the “falsehoods” about his health were “desperate attempts to disrupt our progress and weaken our resolve.” He sure does look like a far cry from the man who would sing Mshin’ Wam while dancing like his (political) life depended on it.
3. Forgery claims
All of the above will be moot, however, if an explosive City Press story on Sunday is to be believed. A former party senior official, Lennox Ntsodo, reported to the police that the party forged signatures to meet the threshold to qualify for the elections. 💀💀 Ntsodo said in an affidavit that in February, 20 people were hired to assist in forgery, sourcing details from a jobseekers database of the Cape Metro council and some from a burial scheme.
The party had denied the allegations, saying Ntsodo had a “sketchy background” and was angry that he didn’t make the MKP list. But… the Rapport newspaper called 15 people on the lists, 14 of whom denied ever signing it. The IEC says it only verified that the person signing was alive and a registered voter and that it would have been “impossible” to verify each signature, relying instead on good faith from parties. It has urged police to speed up the investigations into the claims.
If the party DOES get to run, it could be a headache for the EFF – not the ANC, as previously assumed. The latest poll by market research company Ipsos shows MKP polling at 8.5% among a representative sample of over 2500 registered voters, up from no support since the previous February poll. The ANC’s support held largely steady at just over 40%, but the EFF went from polling at 19.6% in February to just 11.5% in April, which could mean the MKP has eaten into its support. Remember, these are NOT election predictions, just sentiment-testing as South Africans grapple with who to vote for in the crucial upcoming elections.
