Cabinet reshuffle was rational – and ratings agencies got it all wrong: Zuma
President Jacob Zuma has hit back at his critics within the ANC through an affidavit submitted to the Constitutional Court on Thursday, saying that his decision to reshuffle his cabinet was completely rational.
The president was responding to an application by the UDM seeking intervention from the court so that Parliament could vote in a motion of no confidence against the president through a secret ballot.
Zuma, along with speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, were opposing the application.
In his submission, the president said that the UDM’s application was against the mandate for Parliament to operate openly and honestly, and was contrary to constitutional principles.
Furthermore, it sought to overrule the ANC’s own constitution, which ordered party members representing it in Parliament to show loyalty to the party, implying that the ANC was well within its mandate to punish or remove those who voted against directives.
The ANC national working committee resolved to oppose the motion of no confidence, and ANC MPs were ordered to vote against it.
“What I do as President of the ruling party are matter political. What I do as the President of the Republic requires compliance with the Constitution and the law.
“Public office requires the exercise of public power to be done within the constitutional constraints‚ least of which is rationality. My decision to reshuffle the cabinet was done for rational purposes,” he said.
Zuma also addressed the motion itself, and the need for a secret ballot, saying that the UDM’s claims of threats and intimidation are spurious and without merit.
He said further that his actions in executing a cabinet reshuffle were rational, and within his constitutionally mandated rights to do.
Both S&P Global and Fitch explicitly said their decision to downgrade South Africa to junk was based on Zuma firing former finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas. The reshuffle had caused uncertainty in the investment community.
The fact that the country was downgraded had nothing to do with the legality of his move, Zuma argued, but was rather driven by their own ‘misconceptions’ that economic policy would change, he said.
The downgrades were not made based on facts, Zuma said.
“The apprehension expressed by (ratings agencies) that the cabinet reshuffle…is likely to result in a change in direction of the economic policy is clearly informed by a misconception of what the Constitution prescribes.”
“I submit that the possibility of a shift in policy arising out of a Cabinet reshuffle is not founded on any fact.”
Loading ...