Cape Town, June 4 (IANS) South African President Jacob Zuma on Thursday warned African leaders not to overstep the presidential two-term limit.
Zuma made the comment while speaking at the ongoing 2015 World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa in Cape Town.
Zuma told delegates attending the forum that “the term of an African leader should be determined by constitution, not through any other means”, adding that he opposes any attempt to amend the constitution to extend presidential terms, Xinhua reported.
“People say they (only) want to serve two terms and then when their terms are up, they don’t want to go — that’s a problem,” Zuma said.
“No government should claim authority by its own unless based on the will of the people,” Zuma added.
He also noted that coups are intolerable in Africa, and that the African Union (AU) has worked out a system to deal with coups.
Zuma stressed the need to set up a response force under the AU leadership to react to conflicts on the continent.
African problems should be resolved by Africans themselves, he said.
The WEF on Africa is held every year to discuss economic problems and opportunities facing African nations. This year’s event is held under the theme “Then and Now: Reimagining Africa’s Future”.