Jacob Zuma and ANC Youth League President Fikile Mbalula
(Photograph: Paul Botes)

The Friends of Jacob Zuma Trust is facing a financial crisis less than three months after it was established to raise funds to help cover Zuma’s legal costs.

Barnabos Xulu, the spokesperson for the fund, said: “I can confirm that we are far behind in achieving our budget.”

The Mail & Guardian understands that the Congress of South African Trade Unions general secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, expressed concern to fellow unionists about the financial position of the trust, saying the matter was nearing a “crisis”.

Xulu said the trust’s goal is to raise R12-million to cover Zuma’s legal costs, stage various fundraising events and mount an educational drive about the trust’s aims. “We are behind and pleading to the public to contribute,” he said. “I am not at liberty to disclose [how far behind we are].” He said the board of trustees would release the financial statements on November 16.

The trust was formed in July this year and is a collaborative effort between Cosatu and its affiliates, sympathetic businesses and civil society groups.

Durban businessman Don Mkhwanazi chairs the trust. The other trustees are National Education Health and Allied Workers Union general-secretary Fikile “Slovo” Majola, and Sizwe Shezi, president of the South African Youth Council.

Xulu said sympathetic business people had been reluctant to donate because of lack of clarity on tax implications. “I am dealing with the South African Revenue Service to clarify the tax guidelines for the trust,” he said.

South Africa’s income tax law allows “public benefit organisations” such as charitable trusts to claim exemption from tax. The law also provides for donors to charitable trusts to claim deductions from taxable income.

However, the Zuma trust is unlikely to qualify as charitable, and Xulu said the likely outcome of his negotiations with the revenue service was that the trust would be taxed as a person.

He said that while the time frame to raise the R12-million had been extended to July next year, when Zuma’s corruption trial starts in the Durban High Court, the trust already faced legal costs because of Zuma’s court application to overturn the Scorpions raid on his Johannesburg home a month ago. Xulu also said Zuma’s legal team was likely to have to defend an application by the media to broadcast his corruption trial.

Questioned on the cost of these applications, Xulu answered: “Well, it’s high.”

While Zuma’s brinkmanship campaign continued this week -- he is combining the image of the loyal and disciplined cadre with guileful throw-away lines about the African National Congress’s leadership -- the party’s Youth League, a strong Zuma backer, was at pains to demonstrate that it was not on a Jacob Zuma roadshow.

At an ANC National Working Committee (NWC) meeting recently, the league clarified its invitations to Zuma to address its rallies. The league has had to fend off accusations from party members in recent weeks that its rallies, which Zuma addressed, have been a launching pad for a Zuma presidency drive.

ANC Youth League president Fikile Mbalula saluted President Thabo Mbeki from the podium during the Oliver Tambo Memorial Lecture at Wits University this week, which Zuma addressed. Although Zuma was well received, the reception was more subdued than the extravagant display of support for him at the Vaal University of Technology last week.

Youth league leaders told the M&G that ANC leaders had asked them at the NWC meeting why they had not invited Mbeki to their 61st anniversary celebrations and about the message this sent. The league explained that Mbeki had been invited and produced letters from his office saying that he was unavailable.

The Young Communist League also explained that it had not chosen Zuma specifically to address its recent policy conference. National secretary Buti Manamela said the league had written to the ANC asking for a senior leader to address it and Zuma had been suggested.

Zuma, meanwhile, told the audience at the Tambo Memorial Lecture that former ANC president Oliver Tambo had epitomised leadership by consensus. One of the biggest criticisms of Mbeki is that he has stifled debate *1 in the party. “Tambo’s leadership style was that of having deep respect for consultation processes within the movement ... instilling the culture of debate and consultation at all levels of the liberation,” Zuma said.

With acknowledgement to Vicki Robinson, Rapule Tabane and the Mail and Guardian.