ANC presidential candidate Jacob Zuma has urged ANC supporters to put the decision of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to drop charges against him behind them, and to concentrate on winning the coming election.

They should also not allow themselves to be distracted by opposition parties or the media, he said in his weekly newsletter on Friday, issued five days ahead of next week's national and provincial elections.

"We have now entered the Siyanqoba [we are winning] phase of our 2009 election campaign... We should not allow ourselves to be distracted by the opposition, the media or commentators. We should not allow them to set the agenda.

"The decision of the NPA to withdraw charges against me provides an opportunity for the movement and the country to put this matter behind us and to focus on the central task of the moment — to achieve a decisive mandate to intensify the struggle to achieve a better life for all."

The African National Congress needed to "decisively win" the 22 April election, Zuma said, to establish an unequivocal mandate for five years of intensive national effort to accelerate change and progress.

Sapa

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