Former President Jacob Zuma on Thursday dismissed reports linking him to the new political party being formed in KwaZulu-Natal.
Speaking in his rural village of Nkandla during his homecoming prayer, Zuma said he remained a loyal African National Party (ANC) member.
It marked the first time he publicly commented on the reports since his recall as president earlier in 2018.
After months of delays in welcoming their fallen hero, Nkandla residents finally got their chance to thank and welcome Zuma back with prayer.
“My perseverance is not a small thing. Those people who say one day I’ll leave the ANC and form or join a new party don’t know me very well,” he said. “I abandoned my family and everything, for one reason – that I wanted to liberate Africans. We did win because we liberated them.”
Zuma, who currently faces legal woes, says he is not corrupt and not bothered by those who call him a thief.
“No matter what people say about me, I’m not bothered. If they were saying Zuma you did this and I knew I did it, I would feel guilty. You would see in my face that I’m stressed because I’ve been caught. Even if they say I’m corrupt, I’m not corrupt. Why would I be hurt when I’m not corrupt? I’m not corrupt, I’m telling you… Zuma is not corrupt. I’ll fight for what you know me for until the end.”
As the State Capture Commission of Inquiry prepares to kick off, Zuma said it was not true that the State had been captured.
He argued not all three pillars of the state were under capture.
“If you tell the world that in South Africa there is what is called State Capture, it means you are saying all these three pillars are captured. Do you hear me? But no-one has said these three are captured. It means this term is used to tarnish the image of certain people.”
Zuma is due back in court again next week Friday on fraud, corruption, money laundering and racketeering charges.
Source:eNCA
