Jet-setting Mbeki slammed

Political criticism of President Thabo Mbeki, including from within the African National Congress, intensified on Tuesday because of the way he was handling the crisis surrounding xenophobia.

Mbeki left the country on a business trip to Japan while a solution still had not been found for the refugee crisis which emerged because of the xenophobic violence in the past two weeks.

Analysts and political leaders alike felt the president's credibility was decreasing daily and that his corps of leaders, amid the violence, could allow the unhappiness in the governing alliance about Mbeki to erupt.

Mbeki and ministers Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Marthinus van Schalkwyk arrived in Japan on Tuesday for talks on African development.

ANC treasurer-general Matthews Phosa said in reference to Mbeki's speech on Sunday night that the party would have to lead the way.

"The ANC's leadership corps visited the afflicted areas at the weekend and went to look at the problem at grassroots level.

Calls for early election

"We prefer to be anchored among the people," he said on Tuesday.

Asked why Mbeki did not do the same, Phosa said, "I don't know. Ask him."

Contact with ordinary people was something that went missing in the recent period of Mbeki's presidency.

Phosa recently became the most-senior ANC member to say that an early election would be the solution to a tense political climate.

In contrast to Mbeki, the ANC also has spoken out firmly against the crisis in Zimbabwe. This strengthened suspicions of the widening gap between Mbeki and his party.

ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe responded to questions by saying that the government should be given room to do its work.

Various ministers gave reports on the situation at a meeting of the ANC's national executive committee (NEC) during the past week.

Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille repeated her call for an early election.

She said: "The fact of the matter is that Mbeki's leadership is bankrupt. A president worthy of his station would put all appointments aside until such time that the crisis had been resolved."

United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa said Mbeki did not lead from the front "but from behind".

'Clearly not interested'

He said the president tended to depend on his ministers, but that they were caught in the run-up to next year's election because they were unsure of their futures.

Dr Xolela Mangcu, a political analyst linked to Wits University, said Mbeki was clearly not interested in leadership.

"I simply can't understand why we still have this man as president. He doesn't care for the communities in his country.

"But, he'll never agree to an early election. He's too arrogant for that."