Jacob Zuma Expresses Disappointment With Floyd Shivambu, Says He Trusted Former Secretary-General

• Jacob Zuma has broken his silence on Floyd Shivambu's decision to form his own political party and take members with him
• Shivambu was removed as Secretary-General of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party after taking an unauthorised trip to Malawi
• The former Economic Freedom Fighters member has since announced plans to start his own political party and contest elections

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.

FREE STATE - Jacob Zuma is disappointed by former Secretary General (SG) Floyd Shivambu.

Shivambu was removed as the SG of the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party by Zuma in June 2025 after conducting an unauthorised trip to Malawi, where he met with Shepherd Bushiri.

Shivambu then started a consultation process to determine if the country needed another political party, before his MK Party membership was terminated.

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What did Zuma say about Shivambu’s departure?

Speaking to supporters in the Free State over the weekend (30-31 August), the former State President admitted that he was disappointed by Shivambu.

“I was disappointed by a young man whom I had trusted in an extraordinary way. We told him that he had erred, and we saw him taking people and leaving with them,” Zuma said.

He added that some people thought they were better than others in the party just because they knew how to speak English.

“We gave him an opportunity to lead this new party, but what did he do? He decided to start his own party,” Zuma stated.

Zuma believed in Shivambu’s mandate

The MK Party leader also explained that the reason he was happy with Shivambu joining was because of his mandate of wanting to unite all black people behind the MK Party. Shivambu left the Economic Freedom Fighters for the MK Party, praising Zuma when he did.

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His decision to then form his own movement and take some party members with him has left Zuma disappointed.

“He turned into something else and lobbied people to leave the MK party, and some of those people I had also trusted,” Msholozi said.

What you need to know about Shivambu

• Zuma appointed Shivambu as the MK Party's Secretary-General in November 2024.
• Shivambu sparked criticism online over his decision to visit fugitive pastor Bushiri in Malawi.
• Zuma removed Shivambu from his post for undertaking unauthorised international trips.
• Shivambu said he would remain a party member and consider starting his own political movement.
• Shivambu’s membership was terminated in August 2024 after he made several utterances about the party.

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Shivambu started the consultation process to decide whether he should form his own party after he was sacked as SG.

South Africans weighed in on Shivambu's plans, with many saying that the decision wasn't a surprise and knew it was his plan all along.

Source: Briefly News