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Cape Town - Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa has told the BBC that “everyone agrees” the South African state was captured by corrupt elements, and that President Jacob Zuma is “anxious” about his future.
Ramaphosa was speaking in an interview with Zeinab Badawi on the BBC current affairs programme Hardtalk on Thursday.
"Of course there's been state capture, everyone agrees that our state was captured by corrupt elements - people who purported to be close to the president, who have been doing really bad things," he said.
Ramaphosa, who is leading the South African delegation to the World Economic Forum in Davos, said a "new dawn" is on the horizon.
“We are now involved in a new era in South Africa. There is a new leadership, and this new leadership is just barely a month old in its position," he said.
The deputy president acknowledged that the issue of whether Zuma would serve out the remainder of his presidential term is something "everyone wants to see addressed".
“Constitutionally speaking, he still has 18 months. In 18 months obviously a lot of things can happen," he said.
He said Zuma is "anxious".
"Any normal human being would be anxious, would be concerned about all this," he said, adding that the president wants matters to be handled "carefully".
He said his key interest is moving the country forward, not focusing on individuals.
Ramaphosa was elected as the new president of the African National Congress at the party's 54th national conference last month, sending the rand to a nine-month high.
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