Now we have rumours of both Mbeki and Zuma offering Sexwale a place as the deputy president, but I think more important is that there might be a shift within the ANC to get away from a divided party. Who knows...December is coming...

Presidential hopeful Tokyo Sexwale’s last-minute campaign in the succession race is gaining momentum and is said to be rattling both the Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma camps, which are preparing to barter with Sexwale.

With the formal nomination process that opened this week, all three candidates are seeing shifts in their support. Mbeki’s support in the ANC has dwindled, say sources in the Sexwale camp, as a result of “strategic blunders”, such as the suspension of National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) head Vusi Pikoli.

Zuma, although seemingly favoured by the membership audit of the party, is bound to be affected by the judgement in the Constitutional Court against his former financial adviser, Schabir Shaik. The NPA says the judgement clears one more hurdle in its path to prosecuting Zuma.

Sources in the Sexwale camp say talks are taking place between Sexwale and members of both the Mbeki and Zuma camps, with both offering him the position of deputy president.


Since Sexwale began campaigning five months ago, the former Gauteng premier has been trying to convince ANC members that his “third way” is what the divided party needs.

Sexwale supporters say ordinary ANC members in branches are beginning to see the dangers in the factionalism dividing the party.

They say the Sexwale option is the only one that could get the movement on the right track again.

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