Former President Jacob Zuma has dismissed claims that his nine years in office were characterised by policy uncertainty.
In an article he published on his Facebook page on Sunday, Zuma said these claims are “erroneous and a dishonest narrative.”
During the State of the Nation Address in February, President Cyril Ramaphosa said his government is addressing concerns around policy uncertainty and inconsistency.
However, Zuma insisted in his article that there was policy certainty during his term of office.
He said the fact that there were policy debates was a sign of the African National Congress’ (ANC) open and transparent policy making process. This did not constitute uncertainty, he argued.
Zuma added that South Africa, being a country governed by the rule of law, also has processes that allow stakeholders and Parliament to debate policies.
He therefore castigated “a few individuals in the leadership” for propagating this narrative.
Statements that there has been policy uncertainty in the last two administrations are dishonest and untrue, particularly if they are made a narrative by senior people of our movement, who have been part of these important and thorough policy formulation processes.
Former President Jacob Zuma
Zuma’s comments are likely to be seen as a continuation of his frosty relationship with President Ramaphosa, who has been leading a campaign of renewal.
This is Zuma’s second public rebuke of Ramaphosa’s comments. In January, he also posted an article dismissing the “nine wasted years” narrative often attributed to Ramaphosa and Finance Minister Tito Mboweni.
Ramaphosa has remained steadfastly silent on these articles so far.