“You have taken a conscious decision to leave,” ANC Secretary-General tells Zuma

South Africa

Despite denouncing the ANC and leading the MK to a third-place finish in the parliamentary polls, former president Jacob Zuma insisted he remained a member of the ANC.

The party formalized his expulsion on Monday. The ANC secretary general criticized Zuma's attitude.

“We don't know why you have a party, and then you argue for your membership, when you have taken a conscious decision to leave the ANC. You have impugned the integrity of the ANC,” Fikile Mbalula said during a press conference.

"You have done everything. You have brought us below 40%, I mean, below 50% and we are grappling with that now. So all of those things have happened. We are dealing with the consequence of Jacob Zuma's actions."

Zuma joined the ANC Youth League in 1959 and rose through the ranks to become the party leader.

After leaving office, the former president retained a strong political capital.

“It doesn't matter the rank but if you break the rules and the constitution, you contravene, we've got a responsibility to maintain discipline in the party. And you'll be subjected to the ANC disciplinary process. And we didn't think that at any given point in time we'll deal with a situation like this in history of our former president, to be subjected to DC (Disciplinary Committee).”

Zuma's MK Party denounced the expulsion and accused the ANC's disciplinary committee of behaving like a “kangaroo court."

It has alleged nor Jacob Zuma nor his designate representative had been informed of the ruling in violation of the ANC's constitution.

The ANC had suspended the membership of the 82-year-old in January.