Zuma asks Maimane: Why are you victimising Duduzane

Cape Town – President Jacob Zuma on Thursday lashed out at DA leader Mmusi Maimane for alleging that he as the leader of the country had a hand in his son Duduzane’s success as a business person.

Zuma was responding to a question on South Africa’s unemployment rate when Maimane put it to him in a follow-up question that he allegedly said: “Duduzane is my only son who deals with money. You must help him.”

Maimane then asked Zuma: “Are you also going to help those South African young people who are unemployed and who are not Duduzane’s?”

Zuma kicked off his response by saying unemployment is the world over and global leaders everywhere are viewing it as a “time-bomb”.

“You put the question as if it’s only South Africa.”

He then moved on to the subject of his son.

“Now Duduzane – I’ve never heard that he has ever benefited from government where Zuma has participated saying, ‘Give him something.’”

According to Zuma, his son’s involvement in business are “out of his own accord”.

“He started by working and later became a business person. But because he’s a son of the president … there is no law that says he can’t enter business.”

Zuma said there are many other successful young black business people and if Maimane has only come across his son Duduzane then he is indeed an “unfortunate” leader.

“You can’t single out one young person and victimise him because he is the son of the president. I’ve never assisted him on any issue,” Zuma emphasised. “It is his own business. That cannot be me who must answer how he got into business. I don’t think that’s correct.

“You’re being funny to a young man who has gone to school and is now in business. You can discuss it differently. You are isolating a young man simply because he is the son of the president.”