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ANC concerned over ruling ordering Zuma to explain cabinet reshuffle

Xinhua, May 5, 2017 Adjust font size:

South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Friday voiced concern over a ruling by the North Gauteng High Court that President Jacob Zuma must provide reasons for the recent cabinet reshuffle.

"This judgment signifies unfettered encroachment of the judiciary into the realm of the executive, pandering to the whims of the opposition who want to co-govern with the popularly elected government through the courts," the party said in a statement.

The court delivered the ruling on Thursday, which also ordered Zuma to hand over cabinet reshuffle records to the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) within five working days.

The records allegedly contain intelligence Zuma used as "an excuse" to fire Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan in the cabinet reshuffle, which also saw the sacking or replacement of nine other ministers.

Zuma reportedly told the ANC top leadership before the reshuffle that he had received intelligence that Gordhan was seeking foreign assitance to topple him.

Zuma later said the cabinet reshuffle was based on the intelligence.

The reshuffle prompted international rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Fitch to downgrade South Africa's sovereign credit to junk status in April.

Last week, the DA approached the Pretoria High Court, seeking a court order to compel Zuma to give reasons for the cabinet reshuffle and hand over relevant records.

The DA argued that the axing of ministers, in particular the finance minister, has already shown signs of economic negativity for the country.

In its Friday statement, the ANC said the Constitution confers upon the President powers to constitute his cabinet without imposing an obligation upon him to consult opposition parties.

To read into the Constitution that the president must explain himself on the composition of the National Executive to the opposition is to use the judiciary to police political decisions and sets a very worrisome precedent, the ANC said.

The ANC urged Zuma to appeal this judgment. Zuma has not responded to the ruling yet. Endit