South Africa’s ruling party should dump Jacob Zuma

“AMANDLA” (“power” in Zulu and Xhosa), comes the cry from the podium. “Ngawethu” (“to us”), the crowd roars back. The old chants that once rumbled from South Africa’s townships are again ringing out. But this time they are directed not at apartheid but against a reckless attempt by Jacob Zuma, a president who faces 783 charges of fraud and corruption, to tighten his grip on power and install a pliant successor.The protests were sparked by a cabinet reshuffle last week. Mr Zuma fired Pravin Gordhan and Mcebisi Jonas, the finance minister and his deputy. Both are well-regarded by investors and economists. They are credited with putting a lid on public debt and resisting the biggest of the president’s boondoggles, a plan to spend as much as 1trn rand ($73bn) building nuclear power plants that South Africa does not need and cannot afford (see ). This is not the first time Mr Zuma has tried to mount a hostile takeover of the Treasury. Last time, in 2015, the markets forced him to backtrack. On this occasion he seems determined to see it through.