The Survival Game: Why Zuma will outlast the Nkandla crisis

There have been many times when President Jacob Zuma’s political career seemed to be teetering on the edge. Headlines warning of his imminent political demise came when he was named as Mr X in the Scorpions’ arms deal investigation, when he was fired as deputy president after the Schabir Shaik trial, when he was charged with fraud and corruption, when he was on trial for rape, and even for a while during the ANC policy conference in 2012 when his camp looked to be on the back foot. Zuma survived against all odds, rose to be president and secured second terms as ANC and state president. Now political obituaries are again being scripted. But Zuma will likely survive this round too. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.