As former president Jacob Zuma turns 83 on Saturday, members of his party, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), would be holding the mother of all parties across the country to celebrate the milestones of their hero and Struggle veteran.

The party, which he started popularising in December 2023 as a fight back against his political enemies within the ANC, which later expelled him, would hold nine gatherings in seven provinces, except in the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape.

In his home province, KwaZulu-Natal, Zuma would address his supporters at Eshowe Sports Ground under the King Cetshwayo Region.

The party secretary-general, Floyd Shivambu, will be sharing the podium with political expert Professor Sipho Seepe at Protea South Hall in Soweto, Gauteng, while deputy secretary-general Nombuso Mkhize will be at Kgapane Sports Ground in Mopani Region, Limpopo.

Party’s prominent MP Advocate Dali Mpofu will address the MKP Youth League members at Lindelani Hall in the north of Durban.

Another celebration will be held at the Durban University of Technology in Durban.

Announcing the events in a statement, the party said the celebrations will be “an affirmation of our commitment to challenging the systematic revisionism that seeks to distort his authentic political legacy”.

“The aim of these celebratory activities is to rectify the narrative, offering a view that the MK Party regards as both accurate and fair, therefore reinforcing the revolutionary ideals that President Zuma represents,” read the statement.

From the time he was leading the ANC and after the 2017 Nasrec Conference, which saw President Cyril Ramaphosa replacing him as the ANC president, Zuma had been regarded as a champion of black economic empowerment and anti-white monopoly capital struggle.

Born on April 12, 1942, in Nkandla, a deep rural area in northern KwaZulu-Natal, Zuma became a political animal and, over the years, was regarded as a Struggle hero.

However, many other South Africans regarded him as a disaster to the country’s economy because of his association with the notorious Gupta family when he was the country’s fourth president between 2009 and 2018.

He was accused of allowing the Gupta brothers, who are currently fugitives as the law enforcement authorities are seeking their extradition, to do as they pleased in the government.

Zuma is still facing arms deal fraud and corruption charges, which date back to when he was still the MEC in KwaZulu-Natal.

Without formal education, Zuma joined the ANC, served jail time in Robben Island for political activities, and held a senior position in the ANC’s military wing in exile.

He was charged with defying the Zondo Commission, which was investigating Gupta-linked state capture, and was sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment on July 7, 2021, in Estcourt Correction Centre. This led to looting, damage to property, and business unrest.

Within his new party, Zuma also faced enemies, including Jabulani Khumalo, who took him to court, unsuccessfully claiming that he stole the MK Party from him.

However, very influential political and public figures, including former KwaZulu-Natal premier Willies Mchunu, Shivambu, former minister Nathi Nhleko, former Western Cape judge president John Hlophe, former public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane, Mpofu, and many others, not only rallied behind him but also followed him to the new party.

The party made history by changing the political landscape during last year’s general elections, whose results saw the ANC losing power for the first time, leading to the formation of the Government of National Unity.

Although it received more votes than other parties in KwaZulu-Natal, the MK Party remains the main opposition party as it declined to enter the Government of Provincial Unity, which is led by IFP’s Thami Ntuli as a premier.

His party was engulfed with infighting, which included members who claimed to have been sidelined from positions while they contributed their time and money to its formation.

This week, it was reported that Ward 45 councillor in Rustenburg Municipality, Thabiso Molefe, who was praised for winning the first ward for the MK Party, resigned.

The party seems to be on a vigorous drive to have footprints around the country. Last month, it claimed victory in the Western Cape by winning a by-election in Saldanha Bay Municipality’s Ward 1.

bongani.hans@inl.co.za