In a statement issued by the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI), the CEO of SACCI Mr Alan Mukoki said:

QUOTE:

The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry welcomes the decision of the honourable Mr JG Zuma, to step down as the President of the Republic of South Africa. We further welcome the President’s remarks in his statement of resignation wherein he reaffirmed and pledged his commitment to the Constitution of the Republic and the rule of law, and further urged his supporters not to engage in divisive or violent actions in his name.

The dignity with which he handled his resignation should be commended as it was yet again a masterclass display in constitutional democracy with which South Africa has become synonymous and continues to give to Africa and the world.

Whilst we may not always have agreed with the former President, his colleagues and the ruling party from time to time on certain policy and regulatory issues, we always found him upright, approachable, and our engagements with him have been honest, respectful, cordial and collegiate.

We wish to congratulate the former President for the many major contributions he has made to South Africa, the African continent and its people. In particular, and amongst many of his outstanding achievements, Mr Zuma will go down in history as having played a sterling role as one of the architects of peace in quelling what had turned out to be an intractable problem of political violence in KZN in the 90s and the early 2000s.

We look forward to the election of the new President Mr Ramaphosa who is the senior leader of the majority party in parliament. In tackling South Africa’s major challenges ahead, including the stunted economic growth, high rates of unemployment, poverty and inequality, we hope the incoming President and his executive will be alive and alert to these major challenges.

SA needs to get back to a growth path, we throw our weight behind every effort to stimulate the economy, normalize the country’s political landscape, that the rule of law is upheld and positive signals of an investor friendly environment is communicated to both local and international markets.

 

Issued by SACCI