Franchise registrations in Saudi Arabia surge 866% over 3 years    Lulu Saudi Arabia celebrates its 15th anniversary with the grand launch of 'Super Fest 2024'    Cristiano Ronaldo's double powers Al Nassr to 3-1 win over Al Gharafa in AFC Champions League    Culture minister tours Saudi pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka    Al Ahli edges Al Ain 2-1, bolsters perfect start in AFC Champions League Elite    Saud Abdulhamid makes history as first Saudi player in Serie A    Saudi Cabinet to hold special budget session on Tuesday    King Salman orders extension of Citizen's Account Program and additional support for a full year    Al-Falih: 1,238 foreign investors obtain premium residency in Saudi Arabia    Several dead as Storm Bert wreaks havoc across Britain    Irish PM apologizes for walking away from care worker    Most decorated Australian Olympian McKeon retires    Adele doesn't know when she'll perform again after tearful Vegas goodbye    'Pregnant' for 15 months: Inside the 'miracle' pregnancy scam    Hezbollah fires rocket barrages into Israel after deadly Beirut strikes    Ukraine losing ground in Russia's Kursk region, says military source    Do cigarettes belong in a museum?    Saudi Arabia to host 28th Annual World Investment Conference in Riyadh    Riyadh Emir inaugurates International Conference on Conjoined Twins in Riyadh    Katy Perry v Katie Perry: Singer wins right to use name in Australia    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



S. Africa's Zuma wins on risky vows
By Michael Georgy
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 27 - 04 - 2009

BY making promises to everyone from foreign investors in boardrooms to millions of poor black South Africans in shanty towns, Jacob Zuma may have set himself up for a fall when he becomes president.
Zuma's ruling African National Congress has won another landslide victory after this week's election, which was the toughest test for the ANC since apartheid ended in 1994.
On an exhaustive campaign trail, Zuma's strategy has been simple. He was every man's man.
But after he leaves the victory stage and the chants of his anti-apartheid anthem “Bring Me My Machine Gun” fade, demands will start pouring in to tackle problems such as AIDS, crime and above all poverty.
The former freedom fighter promised trade union allies he would boost spending on the poor. Dressed in an expensive suit, he assured foreign investors he would maintain financial stability and told them their money was safe in South Africa.
In his rural homeland, Zuma switched to Zulu regalia and reminded his elders they would never be forgotten by the former goatherd.
“It's a juggling act. So now he is going to be a juggler and you can only juggle up to a particular extent,” said Shadrack Gutto, a law professor at the University of South Africa.
“There is a limit to juggling particularly when you are dealing with real life issues.”
There are plenty. South Africa may already be in its first recession in 17 years. Violent crime is raging and Zuma will be under pressure to make the streets safe before South Africa hosts the 2010 soccer World Cup.
Corruption is rife and Zuma's reputation was not improved by graft charges that were dropped this month on a technicality. He always denied any wrongdoing and blamed the accusations on political enmity.
Zuma's followers also saw conspiracy in rape charges of which he was acquitted in 2006, but not before telling a court he took a shower after unprotected sex with his HIV-positive accuser – not something to help in shaping AIDS policy.
Responsibility
“It's one thing to be in campaign mode...and another to hold executive office with the responsibility of statehood upon one's shoulders,” said Marc Schroeder, sub-Sahara specialist at global intelligence company Stratfor.
Zuma's success may depend on whether he can keep the power-struggle prone ANC fully behind him. Party heavyweights backed Zuma in the election but they may disagree on policy issues that could break him.
“I do not believe a Zuma government will be able to deliver on all their promises,” said Aubrey Matshiqi of South Africa's Centre for Policy Studies.
“The euphoria of the ANC's decisive victory must not make us think the magic by which they have won is an indication of the extent to which they will be able to deliver.”
But Zuma seems to thrive on pressure and getting himself and others out of tight spots. In the 1990s, Zuma mediated between the ANC and the Zulu-dominated Inkatha Freedom Party to end political violence which left thousands dead.
A former member of the ANC's military wing, Zuma rose to become the party's head of intelligence. That experience may help Zuma determine who his friends and enemies are as he picks a new cabinet.
One man who is likely to keep his job is Trevor Manuel, the widely respected finance minister who markets see as the best qualified person to navigate South Africa through the global economic crisis.
Zuma may even be able to make the meltdown work in his favour – using it to restrain trade union allies who want him to steer the economy to the left as payback for their support in a power struggle with ousted former President Thabo Mbeki.
Ultimately, Zuma's survival may depend on his ability to avoid the risky charm offensives of the election battle.
His involvement in a Johannesburg taxi drivers dispute just before the vote raised some concerns.
To win the taxi union's agreement to call off a strike, he suggested a possible suspension of an already advanced plan to replace their vehicles with buses critical for the transport plan for the 2010 World Cup.
The dispute is another problem still to be resolved.


Clic here to read the story from its source.