Zuma, who was president of the African National Congress from December 2007 to December 2017, joined the party at a tender age of 16 in 1959.

He became a member of the armed wing of the ANC, Umkhonto weSizwe, in 1962 and of the South African Communist Party a year later.

However, Zuma and 35 other recruits were arrested by the apartheid security forces in 1963 on their way to Botswana to undergo military training. He was sentenced to 10 years on Robben Island.

READ MORE: http://www.newtribeng.com/opinion/end-of-an-era-the-life-and-times-of-jacob-zuma/