Zuma was answering questions from Members of Parliament (MPs) on the same day that the top court ruled that the Speaker of Parliament had powers to decide whether the Vote could be done through secret ballot for the first time.

‘‘You are trying to get a majority you do not have, by saying secret ballot, I think
it’s unfair, because you are trying to increase a majority you don’t have,’‘ he said.

‘‘I have faced seven kinds of vote of no confidence. You have tried your best but you have failed. Why this time should you do it differently? It’s trying to find a way to see if you can win or not. What has gone wrong? What is the problem?’‘ he asked rhetorically.

He also stated that he was not going to resign and that since the MPs have failed through parliament to remove him, the only viable option was for the ruling Africa National Congress (ANC) to fire him.

The parliament has 400 members with an outright majority of over 240 belonging to the ruling party. The main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) have 89 seats whiles the militant opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) boasts 25 seats. Ten other parties share the remaining slots.

The opposition parties especially the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have held that ANC members would vote against the president once the vote was anonymously carried out.

The ruling party with its majority strength has said it will vote against the motion, but factions within the party are battling for control before a party conference in December where they must choose a successor to 75-year old leader.

Source: AfricaNews