South Africas ANC divided As Zuma Reshuffles Cabinet

President Jacob Zumas midnight sacking of his finance minister shook South African financial markets yesterday, undermining his authority and threatening to split the African National Congress (ANC) that has governed since the end of apartheid.ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe, usually a symbol of unity in the liberation movement, openly criticized the decision to replace finance minister Pravin Gordhan and other cabinet members who opposed Zuma.Im very uncomfortable because areas where ministers do not perform have not been touched. Ministers who have been moved, the majority of them are performing ministers, Mantashe told Talk Radio 702.I felt like this list has been developed somewhere else and was given to us to legitimize it. I cannot say consulted.Rumors Zuma was to replace Gordhan have unsettled markets all week and members of the ANC urged the president to reconsider. His determination to change his cabinet could split the ANC ahead of a vote for a new leader in December, analysts said.The ANC has been the dominant party in South Africa since sweeping to power under Nelson Mandela at the end of apartheid in 1994.The rand has fallen 5 percent since its highest point on Thursday prior to the reshuffle. Banking stocks were down more than 5 percent on Friday and bond yields climbed sharply. Opposition parties called for Zuma to resign but analysts mostly predicted Zuma would survive the fallout after picking home affairs minister Malusi Gigaba to replace Gordhan, a more prudent choice than investors had feared
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