Zuma still in Pietermaritzburg hospital as MK Party's 4 November election push hangs on his face
The 84-year-old MK Party leader has been in Netcare St Anne's since last week, and an election analyst says his absence from the trail would hit the party hard in KwaZulu-Natal.
Jacob Zuma is still in Netcare St Anne’s Hospital in Pietermaritzburg, where the Presidency says the surgeon general is overseeing his medical care. The 84-year-old MK Party leader was admitted last week after the party called what it described as a routine check-up.
As eNCA reported on Monday, election analyst Wayne Sussman believes Zuma’s visibility over the coming weeks will be decisive for the Umkhonto weSizwe Party as it campaigns for the local government elections on 4 November. Sussman told the broadcaster that the party is “on the cusp of achieving something very significant in provinces like KwaZulu-Natal”, and that if Zuma is not at the helm, or if his health continues to deteriorate, that could have a “seismic” effect on the party’s performance and on the results.
Sussman described Zuma as one of the country’s most recognisable political figures, with the brand recognition and the pull at a manifesto launch to lift the mood of activists. He noted that Zuma’s son, Duduzane Zuma, is the party’s first deputy president, but said it would be a concern for the party if its leader is not seen during this stretch of the campaign.
That is the practical question facing the MK Party this week. Its manifesto launch is set for Mbombela on Sunday, and it is not yet clear whether Zuma will attend. He is also due to appear before the TRC Cases Inquiry next Thursday.
For a party that has built its support around one man’s name and presence, the gap is not only a scheduling problem. KwaZulu-Natal is where the MK Party made its sharpest gains in the May 2024 national elections, and the province is where the 4 November vote will test whether that support can be turned into municipal power. Councils control the services residents deal with daily, water, electricity, refuse collection and the local offices where rates and building plans are processed. A campaign run without its most recognisable figure on the ground is a different campaign.
The party has not said when Zuma is expected to be discharged, and no medical update on his condition has been given beyond the Presidency’s confirmation that the surgeon general is involved in his care. Until that changes, both the manifesto launch and the inquiry appearance remain open questions.
