South African President Jacob Zuma said to faces no-confidence vote

South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma is facing a vote of no confidence by the ruling party’s executive committee, media reported on Monday.

The ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) extended its scheduled meeting into a third day on Monday, after Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom proposed the motion of no-confidence on Saturday, said Beeld, an Afrikaans-language daily.

Committee members were locked in a “fiery and fierce” debate over whether a secret ballot should be used to decide the no-confidence motion, it added, citing unnamed sources who had attended the meeting.

In a statement on Sunday, the ANC did not give a reason for the extension of the meeting. The committee is the only body in the ruling party that can remove the leader of the party, besides its 5-yearly congress.

Zuma’s presidency has been plagued by scandal and the nation’s anti-graft watchdog this month asked for a judge to investigate alleged influence-peddling by a wealthy family Zuma has called his friends. 

Zuma has denied any wrongdoing.