THE ZUMA EFFECT

544pp., paperback, Tafelberg, Cape Town, 2026 

ISBN: 9780624087359

Drawing on more than 50 interviews with key insiders, leading political scientists Mcebisi Ndletyana and Mashupye Maserumule explain former President Jacob Zuma's rise to the highest office and the plots, proxies and power plays he used to transform the ANC from a party of principle to one of rent-seeking. 

Examining Zuma’s personality and ethnic background, they also discuss why populism and ethnic mobilisation are so powerful and dangerous. 

"Drawing on multiple sources and diverse voices, from comrades, trade unionists and state officials to journalists the authors provide a layered understanding of how Zuma's era reshaped the ANC as an institution, the public trust and our collective identity ... Nuanced and vigorous" Chitja Twala

"An authoritative account of the attack on democratic institutions in the wake of Jacob Zuma's rise" Xolela Mangcu

Mcebisi Ndletyana is Associate Professor in the Pan African Institute at the University of Johannesburg, and Head: Political Economy at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection. He lives in Johannesburg.

Mashupye Maserumule is Professor at the Tshwane University of Technology. He lives in Pretoria.