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PRESIDENT JACOB Zuma is under fire from both customary law experts and political analysts; with the former condemning his extra-marital affairs as being in conflict with his culture, and the latter saying his apology for his latest indiscretion is no more than a �plastic� attempt to switch media attention to his state of the nation address on Thursday. According to analysts, Zuma had no choice but to apologise for fathering a child out of wedlock with the daughter of soccer boss Irvin Khoza. Media reports say after vigorously defending himself, Zuma bowed to pressure at the weekend and apologised � his second apology in recent years for similar acts. The head of the Centre for Politics and Research, Prince Mashele, said Zuma wanted to have �something to hide behind so that he can say: �I�ve apologised and we�re moving forward�. However, Mashele said South Africans should not accept the apology, which was insincere, coming as it did after his initial defensive and �arrogant� statement. �This is a plastic apology and should not be accepted at all�, Mashele said. At the weekend President Zuma issued a statement saying he regretted the �pain� he had caused by his actions. Zuma, who has three current wives, said the matter had put a lot of pressure on his family and the ruling ANC, which welcomed the apology. �I deeply regret the pain that I have caused to my family, the ANC, the alliance and South Africans in general�, Zuma said in a statement. �I also acknowledge and understand the reaction of many South Africans�, he said. Although welcoming his �belated apology�, it wasn�t enough, according to Independent Democrats leader Patricia de Lille in a Sunday Tribune report. She said Zuma wasn't fit to be President because he didn't live up to the principles enshrined in the Constitution. �He doesn't respect the rights of children, by having so many that he can't afford... and the way he has been using women shows that he doesn't respect gender equality�. Meanwhile customary law experts have jumped into the fray saying Zuma�s behaviour contradicts the essence of African family life. �It's definitely not acceptable customarily�, says Noluthando Ntlokwana, of the Centre for Constitutional Rights. �Impregnating a woman outside wedlock is regarded as a disgrace. Legally, it is not supposed to be done�. She said that the Customary Marriages Act requires that a man must ask permission from his wife or wives if he wishes to get married to another woman. The issue of inhlawulo or damages � which must be given to the unmarried woman's family by the married man's family if he makes her pregnant � has been introduced for the first time to many white South Africans through the Zuma matter. If inhlawulo is paid in cash, the amount must be the equivalent cost of two head of cattle and a goat. This would usually amount to less than R30 000, and it has been reported that a delegation representing Zuma's family arrived by motorcade at Khoza's family mansion in Soweto last January to make the payment.