Addressing students at the Wits University last Wednesday, the former president of the African Union Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, said the African National Congress (ANC) should be ‘clever’ in convincing the South African parliament to amend the constitution to allow expropriation of land without compensation as failure to implement the law would be a real slap in the face of the ruling party.

Against the official opinion of the party, President Jacob Zuma recently decided to give in to protests led by Julius Malema, planning for a constitutional amendment which would facilitate expropriation of white-owned lands to the profit of the black. The move, which was deemed populist, sparked a political debate. The president’s ex-wife, who until now remained silent, decided to back the leader. She however advised against a forceful implementation of the law.

“You can’t have the majority of people in the country not having access to land. It’s not sustainable. We need to find a way of moving forward, for instance, at the ANC’s policy conference. Constitutions are made at a particular point in time and where you find there are problems you amend them. But to amend the Constitution you need a two-thirds vote in Parliament. So if you want to amend the Constitution you must persuade society first, because the political parties in Parliament represent society”, Mrs. Dlamini-Zuma explained trying to bring tensions down.

Souha Touré