Duduzane Zuma’s message to South Africa about the MK Party

Duduzane Zuma said that the MK Party is a permanent and significant fixture in South Africa’s political landscape.

Zuma shared this information during a discussion at the 2026 Biznews Conference at the Champagne Sports Resort in the Drakensberg.

Zuma was recently named Deputy President of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party), where the President is his father, Jacob Zuma.

Many political analysts, including Prince Mashele, predicted that the MK Party would decline after Jacob Zuma’s death.

He said that the MK Party was a temporary success built around the personal influence of Jacob Zuma, rather than a strong political movement.

Mashele added that because the party relies on Jacob Zuma’s personal brand and network, it will crumble once Zuma is no longer leading it or alive.

Duduzane Zuma dismissed this view, saying that the MK Party is here to stay and a big player in the South African political space.

“What people fail to understand is that the MK is here. It is an established entity,” he told delegates at the Biznews Conference.

“Some prefer to skirt around the conversation and discount the MK as a player, but the MK is a player. It is something you need to get used to.”

Zuma said that by November 2026 and the subsequent national elections, the MK Party will be there.

“Over the next 15 to 20 years, we need to see something completely different in this country, and that is something I intend to be a part of.”

He said that the MK Party has created an interesting talking point and dynamic in the South African discussions.

This, he said, was because people have faith in what they bring. “They have hope, and they know that the people within this party will lead us to the promised land,” he said.

Zuma added that the MK Party filled a vacuum by focusing on the needs of the masses, which feel abandoned and are suffering.

“It is easy to talk in closed-off rooms among professionals, business people, and those within the system,” he said.

“However, there is a reality beyond that which a lot of people are ignoring: the reality of the masses.”

“No one is speaking for the masses. We only speak about them in passing, and their needs are not being seen.”

Frans Cronje said that Duduzane Zuma should be taken seriously

South African political analyst and strategist Frans Cronje said that Duduzane Zuma is the future of the MK Party and should be taken seriously.

He told The Common Sense that Duduzane Zuma, the new Deputy President, is a clear successor to his father, Jacob Zuma.

Cronje explained that the MK Party’s vulnerability used to be a lack of a post-Jacob Zuma succession plan. “Duduzane fills that role effectively,” he said.

He added that Duduzane spoke well at the Biznews Conference and demonstrated broad appeal beyond the MK Party’s traditional voter base.

He explained that while the party’s initial support was concentrated in KwaZulu-Natal, it is breaking out of its regional footprint.

Gauteng is one example. The latest polling showed that the MK Party, at 17%, is closing in on the ANC, which sits at 20%.

The polling further showed that the MK Party already holds about two-thirds of the ANC among black voters in South Africa.

He said that, given the ANC’s struggles, it is not inconceivable that the MK Party could catch up to or even surpass the ANC.

Cronje said that the political elites should not repeat the mistakes made in 2007 with Jacob Zuma, who dismissed him and plotted against him, rather than engaging directly.

He said that business leaders should take the MK Party seriously and interact with them directly.

They should also acknowledge that millions of South Africans support MK out of genuine economic hardship and frustration.