African National Congress uMkhonto weSizwe. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan names Nxamalala and Msholozi. Zuma was born in the rural region of Nkandla , which is now part of the KwaZulu-Natal province and the centre of Zuma's support base. He went into exile in and was ultimately appointed head of the ANC's intelligence department. After the ANC was unbanned in , he quickly rose through the party's national leadership and became deputy secretary general in , national chairperson in , and deputy president in Mbeki dismissed Zuma on 14 June after Zuma's financial adviser, Schabir Shaik , was convicted of making corrupt payments to Zuma in connection with the Arms Deal.
Zuma was charged with corruption and was also acquitted on rape charges in the highly publicised trial. Zuma was elected president of South Africa in the general election and took office on 9 May. The criminal charges against him were formally withdrawn the same week.
As president, he launched the R4-trillion National Infrastructure Plan and signed a controversial nuclear power deal with the Russian government, which was blocked by the Western Cape High Court in As a former member of the South African Communist Party , he increasingly relied on left-wing populist rhetoric, and in his State of the Nation address he announced a new policy of "radical economic transformation".
Among the few policies implemented before the end of his presidency were land expropriation without compensation , free higher education , a series of attempted structural reforms in key sectors involving restrictions on foreign ownership, and more stringent black economic empowerment requirements. In the international arena, Zuma emphasised South-South cooperation and economic diplomacy.
Zuma's presidency was beset by controversy, especially during his second term. In , the Public Protector found that Zuma had improperly benefited from state expenditure on upgrades to his Nkandla homestead , and in , the Constitutional Court ruled that Zuma had failed to uphold the Constitution, leading to calls for his resignation and a failed impeachment attempt in the National Assembly.
