Section 102: Motion of No Confidence needs a 51% vote, i.e. for the Motion to carry, it needs at least 201 MPs to vote in favour. President Zuma, before the 8th August vote, has survived five prior motions tabled against him - three have been voted on, one has been withdrawn and one was amended. He also survived one attempt to remove him through Section 89 of the Constitution that allows for the removal of the President on the following grounds:

• a serious violation of the constitution or the law,
• serious misconduct,
• inability to perform the functions of the office.

The most recent motion that happened on 8 August 2017 had an intriguing subplot that secured the first secret ballot. The Speaker made her decision on Monday 7 August and despite the efforts by the opposition parties, theANC defeated the motion with a 198-177 majority vote.

Have a look at all the motions to date: