{"id":947,"date":"2017-10-19T14:24:05","date_gmt":"2017-10-19T14:24:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/subsaharanafricablog\/?p=947"},"modified":"2017-10-19T14:24:05","modified_gmt":"2017-10-19T14:24:05","slug":"south-africa-energy-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/subsaharanafricablog\/2017\/10\/19\/south-africa-energy-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"South Africa Energy Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

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http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2017\/10\/zuma-reshuffles-cabinet-bid-secure-energy-deal-171017123222493.html<\/p>\n

Johannesburg, South Africa –<\/strong>\u00a0President\u00a0Jacob Zuma<\/a>\u00a0has reshuffled his cabinet, adjusting six portfolios including the Ministry of Energy, in a move analysts say is linked to a contentious nuclear energy deal with\u00a0Russia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the presidency said it had moved David Mahlobo, former minister of state security and a longtime Zuma ally, to the energy portfolio.<\/p>\n

Zuma also fired Blade Nzimande, the minister of higher education and training, in a move understood as punitive after\u00a0Nzimande\u00a0criticised the president.<\/p>\n

Nzimande is also the General Secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), a key partner in the tripartite alliance with the ANC-led government. His removal from government has prompted speculation that the SACP may leave the alliance.<\/p>\n

Political analyst Steve Friedman, director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Johannesburg, told Al Jazeera that\u00a0Mahlobo’s appointment was\u00a0the most important development.<\/p>\n

“He is considered a hyper-Zuma loyalist. It seems he has been moved into this position to push through the nuclear deal,” Friedman said.<\/p>\n

Zuma appeared to be hedging bets, Friedman explained, before the party conference in December 2017 when the ANC will elect a new leader.<\/p>\n

“Should Zuma lose that election, he has put in place a loyalist in the ministry so he can nail down the nuclear deal [in the future],” Friedman said.<\/p>\n

The South African government has been trying to push through a contentious nuclear energy deal to the tune of $74bn with Russia. The deal is thought to have been struck when Zuma met Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2014.<\/p>\n

In April, the Western Cape High Court ruled that the potential deal with Russia was unlawful and unconstitutional and that if the government wanted to proceed, it would have to restart the process.<\/p>\n

Liz McDaid, an environmentalist with Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute – one of the organisations that took the state to court – described Mahlobo’s\u00a0appointment\u00a0as “systematic state capture”.<\/p>\n

“This appointment was not dreamt up last night. It is an obvious attempt to make this [nuclear] deal happen in the future,” McDaid said.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0Follow<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/span>Justice Malala<\/span>\u00a0@justicemalala<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Blade Nzimande fired for the principled\u00a0#<\/span>SACP<\/span><\/a>\u00a0stance against\u00a0#<\/span>StateCapture<\/span><\/a>. Worryingly\u00a0#<\/span>Mahlobo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0is now in energy. Woza nuclear, gas deal!<\/p>\n

4:43 AM – Oct 17, 2017<\/a><\/div>\n