Zuma Vote: Opposition parties argue their case
Mmusi Maimane has made a plea to ANC MPs to help take the country back.
"The choice before us today is not between yellow, red or blue. It is not about party politics, it's not about who tabled this motion or who didn't. Today our choice is between right and wrong, between good and evil. Today, we do what's best for our country or we turn our back on it," he says.
Maimane opened the debate on the motion of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma in the National Assembly - telling the house the stakes have never been higher.
"I know many of you are tired of talking about President Zuma and so am I. And I'm tired of speaking about the Guptas. That is why we tabled this motion so that we can move on from this disastrous chapter and focus on the things that matter to our people," he says.
Defence Minister, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has told the National Assembly that her political consciousness tells her she has a duty to defend the ANC.
Opposition parties have been urging ANC MPs to vote with the consciences in the motion. Mapisa-Nqakula says they've been there before.
"The sponsor of this motion, the honourable Maimane has said on a number of occasions that President Zuma is not the real target. He is but a small aspect of their strategy. The target is the ANC," she says.
Meanwhile, economist David Shapiro says it's difficult to predict how the markets will react to today's events.
Yesterday, the currency strengthened slightly on the back of Speaker Baleka Mbete's announcement that the vote will be secret.
Shapiro feels South Africa has difficult task ahead of turning the economy around - irrespective of today's outcome.
"There's still a lot of things that need to be done in the economy. There's a lot of pay we have to take. I'm watching like everybody else to see what happens. It also depends, if he is booted out then who comes in and whether the person that takes over and the ANC move in the right direction. That means introducing some very harsh business reforms," he says.
While MP's are getting ready to head to Parliament today for the motion of no confidence vote in President Jacob Zuma, South Africans have voiced their thoughts on today's vote. Listen below.