In South Africa, as the internal elections to the African National Congress (ANC, historic ruling party) approach, scheduled for next December, President Cyril Ramaphosa finds himself a little more weakened. His party has chosen a regional representative close to former President Jacob Zuma, in the key province of Kwazulu-Natal. The Head of State also sees his image being gradually tarnished by the strange story of the theft of money from his farm.
With our correspondent in Johannesburg, Claire Bargeles
The Ramaphosa camp hoped that the outgoing ANC leader for the Kwazulu-Natal region in the east of the country would be re-elected this weekend. But it was ultimately his opponent, Siboniso Duma, close to the faction loyal to Jacob Zuma, who was chosen hands down. An election which reveals a little more the fractures within the party, while the shadow of the ex-president continues to hover over the region from which the riots started a year ago.
Last Thursday, it was another former president who attacked Cyril Ramaphosa: Thabo Mbeki took him to task during a public ceremony, reproaching him for his lack of action in the face of endemic unemployment and poverty, and predicting that other popular protest movements are to be expected.
New blows, while the Head of State is also criticized by public opinion for his silence in the face of suspicions of embezzlement, following the theft of money from his farm. Under pressure, he was content to send answers to questions from the mediator of the Republic, without ever speaking publicly on the subject.