Mr Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (Msholozi)

President of (since 2009)

Date of Birth: 12/04/1942
Place of Birth: Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal Province

Career: Chief Representative, ANC (the year of the signing of the Nkomati Accord between the Mozambican and South African governments), Mozambique, 1984; Deputy Secretary-General, ANC, 1991-94; Member, Executive Council, Economic Affairs and Tourism, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Provincial Government, 1994-99; National Chairman, ANC Council, 1995-97; Leader, Government Business in the National Assembly, 1997-2005; Deputy President, ANC, 1997-2000; MP, ANC: National Assembly, 1999-2005; Deputy President, 1999-2005; President, ANC, 1997 to date; President, South Africa, 2009 to date.

Commentary: A veteran of public scandal, he has had to make three public apologies to date, but reports of Zuma's political demise are exaggerated. ANC insiders have briefed jounalists that Zuma's promiscuity was a liability and have put pressure on him to apologise for his latest aberration, fathering another child out of wedlock with the daughter of football mogul Irvin Khoza, came from some of his most senior allies, KZN Premier Zweli Mkhize, leader of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) Zwelinzima Vavi and South African Communist Party (SACP) Secretary General Blade Nzimande. However, despite murmurs of disapproval from the public and within the ANC, Zuma’s approval ratings appear not to have dipped much since polls late last year. A TNS survey conducted in the week of his parliamentary address showed that his popularity hinged on service delivery rather than his sex life. The survey, conducted among a sample of 2,000 adults in seven cities, showed Zuma’s approval level rose from 40% at the beginning of 2009 to 58% last November.