In a frenzied week of speculation and fake news, the fourth president of the Republic of South Africa has finally fallen. Journalists fought one another to get ahead of the pack to break the news of Zuma's drawn-out recall or resignation. It got to a point where every journalist had a credible source within the ruling party ranks, each of whom was willing to go on record regarding Zuma's every move. But on the day when so many expected him to resign, the opposite actually happened.
Zuma, who initially defied the calls by the national executive committee (NEC) of the ANC to tender his resignation with immediate effect, argued he hadn't done anything wrong and pleaded for a three to six-month grace period to ensure the transition of power was dealt with in a diplomatic fashion. This wasn't met well by certain corners of civil society and within the ruling party, that at this point had just about had it with Mr Zuma and his dirty laundry.
As we absorb the last embers of his shortened second term, the obvious question then becomes: how will his legacy be viewed once all is said and done? The common kneejerk reaction on social media has always been to focus on all the bad somebody does, while simply ignoring the good - no matter how little it may have been.
One thing is certain; JG Zuma's tenure as president was a tumultuous one. It was a tenure filled with unbridled corruption and a centralised patronage network extending as far as the Union Buildings, but it was also a presidency that arguably did more for service delivery than any other president did before him.
This is the same leadership that saw the government deal a heavy blow to HIV/Aids. Elsewhere, his administration managed to build two new universities in historically displaced centres. Glass half full, glass half empty if you will.
While these successes among the many others may be clouded by the glaring failures and pillage that happened under his watch, they ought to be remembered.
The positive side of his tenure is best typified by his recent announcement at the 54 ANC elective conference that the South African government would be rolling out fee-free tertiary education for the missing middle and the poor – effective immediately. One also sees his good leadership in how his administration also managed to deliver a reliable social-grant payment system (bar the recent SASSA debacle) that continues to serve the poorest of the poor in this country daily.
While these successes and others may be clouded by the glaring failures and pillage that happened under his watch, they ought to be remembered. In light of all the good that came before, it would also be unbalanced not to mention what invariably led to his demise.
Zuma was a corrupt head of state who enabled and in some instances was complicit in the actual pillage of the state by foreign and domestic interest groups. He was in bed with the Gupta family, who now find themselves being probed re corruption relating the Vrede dairy farm project, from which so many of Zuma's acolytes directly benefited.
It is this inability to distance himself from this corruption that became Zuma's ultimate undoing. Some would argue he was the head of a parallel government that worked contrary to the rules of our society – to enable civilians to use Waterkloof airforce base to land wedding guests, for instance. It was also Jacob Zuma who enabled the rapacious looting of state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
He watched while his cohorts milked Eskom, Transnet, the SABC, SAA and the many other SOEs dry, and indeed was seen to work against those who would prevent it. Examples of this include the notorious midnight Cabinet reshuffles that caught everyone unawares, none of which were as shocking as the late-night swearing-in of Des van Rooyen as finance minister.
Despite his protestations of ignorance, it was also at his behest that the state would go on to build him a R240-million compound at Nkandla. His refusal to see any wrongdoing by himself or those closest to him would later go on to categorise his tenure.
This is the battle of the soul of the ANC, as William Gumede once famously wrote.
While all of this is still relatively fresh, those who are now in positions of power – particularly new President Cyril Ramaphosa – must act immediately. The ANC leadership must ensure the party's standing is renewed in the eyes of its members, in order that it may face up to the rising tide brought forth by the EFF and others. This is the battle of the soul of the ANC, as William Gumede once famously wrote.