The Zuma Years: South Africa's Changing Face of Power

The years since Thabo Mbeki was swept aside by Jacob Zuma’s ‘coalition of the wounded’ have been especially tumultuous, with the rise and fall of populist politicians such as Julius Malema, the terrible events at Marikana, and the embarrassing Guptagate scandal. What lies behind these developments? How does the Zuma presidency exercise its power? Who makes foreign policy? What goes on in cabinet meetings? What is the state of play in the Alliance – is the SACP really more powerful than before and, as the landscape shifts, what are the opposition’s prospects?

In The Zuma Years, Richard Calland attempts to answer these questions, and more, by holding up a mirror to the new establishment; by examining key drivers of transformation in South Africa, such as the professions and the universities; and by training a spotlight on the toxic mix of money and politics.

The Zuma Years is a fly-on-the-wall, insider’s approach to the people who control the power that affects all South Africans. It takes you along the corridors of government and corporate power, mixing vivid anecdote and interviews with key players with solid research. Using inside information and fascinating anecdotes, it gives a human face to politics. It makes sense of how power works in South Africa and who really makes the decisions.