The Democratic Alliance (DA) has announced that its leader, Mmusi Maimane, will lead a protest against the capture of the National Treasury “by Jacob Zuma’s African National Congress (ANC) and the Gupta dynasty” on Thursday morning.

The DA said the protest, which comes amid fresh calls for President Zuma to step down, will take place outside the National Treasury headquarters in Pretoria.

“For the past three years, Zuma and his corrupt friends have desperately sought after the keys to the National Treasury, and to our country’s R1.4-trillion national budget,” alleged the DA, which described Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba as a “Gupta-puppet”.

Gigaba has previously refuted such allegations, but the DA said “the corrupt and the connected now have full access to the people’s money”, adding: “We must stop the looting and stealing of South Africa’s resources by those who belong in jail, not in government jobs”.

The DA said Maimane will be joined in the mid-morning protest by other party leaders including Tshwane Mayor Solly Msimanga, National Spokesperson Refiloe Nt’sekhe and Gauteng leader, John Moodey.