SCA to rule on Zuma appeal

2009-01-12 07:29

Bloemfontein - The Supreme Court of Appeal hands down judgment on Monday in an appeal against a high court ruling last September that halted the prosecution of ANC leader Jacob Zuma.

The National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) lodged the appeal last year after Pietermaritzburg High Court Judge Chris Nicholson found that Zuma, the African National Congress's presidential candidate in the upcoming general elections, should have been offered the opportunity to make representations before the NDPP decided to re-charge him for corruption in December 2007.

This finding effectively halted Zuma's prosecution.

Nicholson said he could not exclude the possibility of political interference in the decision to re-charge Zuma, a finding that ultimately led to the axing of president Thabo Mbeki.

Mbeki has also lodged an appeal against Nicholson's finding.

A bench of five judges heard the case last November.

Zuma will not attend

Judgment will be delivered in Bloemfontein from 10:00 to 11:00 and will be broadcast live by several television channels.

Zuma is not expected to attend court on Monday.

ANC spokesperson Carl Niehaus said it was understood that the judgment would not take long and that it "did not make sense" for Zuma to attend.

He said he did not expect many Zuma supporters, who often wait in crowds outside his court appearances, to go to court on Monday.

"They go to see Mr Zuma, so if he is not there, it is unlikely that they will be there," said Niehaus.

- SAPA