JOHANNESBURG, Sept 20: South Africa’s ruling party demanded that President Thabo Mbeki resign and he reluctantly agreed on Saturday, as his long-running battle with rival and heir apparent Jacob Zuma reached a crescendo that will reverberate across Africa’s economic powerhouse.

Mbeki had been under heavy pressure from his own party to quit following a judge’s ruling last week that he may have had a role in Zuma being charged with corruption.

Zuma was not expected to take over immediately. African National Congress secretary-general Gwede Mantashe said Mbeki would remain president until an interim one is appointed. Mantashe also said parliament would meet soon to formalise the process.

He said Mbeki would continue as regional mediator in Zimbabwe, where last week he persuaded President Robert Mugabe to share power with the opposition.

Still, the blindingly swift leadership change has the potential to wreak turmoil in Africa’s strongest economy, especially if other key Cabinet ministers decide to quit in solidarity with Mbeki. All eyes were on Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, who shares the credit with Mbeki for South Africa’s sustained economic growth and investor-friendly policies over the past decade.

“Following the decision of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress to recall President Thabo Mbeki, the President has obliged and will step down after all constitutional requirements have been met,” the presidency said in a terse statement.

Mbeki’s term in office was to have lasted until April 2009.

Several key government executives, including Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, had indicated they would follow Mbeki out if he were forced to resign. Mlambo-Ngcuka had replaced Zuma as the country’s No. 2 executive after Mbeki fired Zuma in 2005 because of the corruption scandal.

Mantashe said a high-level ANC committee “decided to recall the president” before his term in office expires and that Mbeki had accepted the news graciously.

The president “did not display shock ... he welcomed the news and agreed that he is going to participate in the process,” Mantashe said.

Mbeki did not attend the ANC meetings that started on Friday and went on all night to decide his fate.—AP