Fate of S Africa's Zuma hangs on tomorrow ANC meeting

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AFP Johannesburg
Last Updated : Feb 06 2018 | 2:40 AM IST
South Africa's ANC party will hold an emergency meeting tomorrow, officials said, in a move that could force Jacob Zuma from office after the embattled president reportedly refused to resign.
Zuma, whose tenure has been engulfed by corruption scandals, is due to deliver the annual state of the nation address on Thursday, despite growing calls for him to quit before the speech.
The African National Congress said that its national executive committee would discuss preparations for the address and "management of the transition" of power between Zuma and his deputy Cyril Ramaphosa.
The national executive committee is the ANC's highest decision-making body and can "recall" Zuma from the post of president -- though he could refuse to comply.
Tomorrow's special meeting was announced after top ANC officials gathered at Luthuli House, the party headquarters in Johannesburg, today.
Scuffles erupted outside the building as Zuma supporters clashed with rival ANC activists, with at least one woman kicked and beaten with sticks, an AFP reporter witnessed.
Many ANC members are pushing for Ramaphosa, the new head of the party, to replace Zuma, 75, as president immediately.
But Zuma loyalists have said that the serving president should complete his second and final term in office, which would end when elections are held next year.

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First Published: Feb 06 2018 | 2:40 AM IST

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