South African President Jacob Zuma's power exit appears to be closer

South Africa PresidentJacob Zuma's exit from power appeared to be inching closer today as his deputy, who is expected to replace him, said he anticipated a "speedy resolution" to their transition talks.

Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, who in December became leader ofthe African National Congress, acknowledged "a lot of speculation and anxiety" about the status of the president, but said he and Zuma would finish their discussions and report to the ruling ANC party and the population of one of Africa's biggest economies in the coming days.

Since replacing Zuma as ANC leader, Ramaphosahas been delivering a strong anti-corruption message. Many former supporters who have turned against Zuma have worried that he is digging in or at least trying to make a deal, possibly including immunity from prosecution, in exchange for his resignation.

Zumahas denied various reports and allegations, reflecting a growing mood of uncertainty over the protracted wait for a resolution to the country's leadership crisis.

Delay fuels speculation about resignation deal

Zuma, 75, has been South Africa's most controversialpresident since the end of white minority rule in 1994,overseeing a tumultuous nine years marked by economic declineand numerous allegations of corruption

His second five-year term is scheduled to end with elections in 2019, but many ruling party members want Ramaphosa to take over as soon as possible so that the party can try to recover the trust of voters alienated by the president's scandals.

The speaker of parliament has said Zuma will not give the state of the nation address in parliament that had been set for Thursday, and the ruling ANC announced the postponement of a meeting Wednesday to discuss the president's fate. Ramaphosa said the meeting was delayed to allow for a conclusion to his talks with Zuma.

That delay increased speculation that a deal for Zuma toresign had been ironed out. Times Live, an online news service,quoted sources as saying Zuma would resign as soon as a list ofpreconditions had been finalized.

More information about Zuma's status as president will be available once "all pertinent matters" have been finalized, said Ramaphosa.

Speaker Baleka Mbete suggested South Africans would getclarity on his fate within hours.

Recycling history

"In this day there will be some progress which the presidentof the ANC will be ready to come back to us about," she told theeNCA television channel.

The machinations within the ANC are an ironic recycling ofhistory for Zuma, who engineered the ouster of former presidentThabo Mbeki in 2008 shortly after taking the helm of theANC.

Zuma has not said whether he will resign voluntarily beforehis second term as president ends next year.

The rand, which has tended to strengthen on signsthat Zuma could step down early, was jittery on Wednesday astraders awaited clarity on the political drama.

800 counts of corruption

Ramaphosa has put the focus on rooting out corruption andrevitalizing economic growth since defeating Zuma's preferredsuccessor, Zuma's ex-wife Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, in the ANCleadership race.

The former union leader has said he does not want tohumiliate Zuma, but has been lobbying behind the scenes for himto step down early.

Zuma still retains the support of a faction within the ANC,but has seen several prominent party allies desert him recently.

TheANCwas the main anti-apartheid movement for decades and has led South Africa since the end of white minority rule in 1994, but its moral stature has diminished because ofZumaand wider problems of corruption and mismanagement.

Zuma, meanwhile, is still fighting nearly 800 counts of corruption over anarms deal from the late 1990s and his ties with the Guptabrothers, a family of wealthy Indian-born businessmen, are thesubject of a judicial inquiry on grand-level corruption.

The Guptas and Zuma have denied any wrongdoing.

Zuma also faces another no-confidence vote against hisleadership in parliament on Feb. 22, brought by the ultra-leftEconomic Freedom Fighters party.