The law has spoken - ANC

2008-11-12 13:05

Johannesburg - The African National Congress said it accepted the Constitutional Court's decision to dismiss former president Thabo Mbeki's challenge to a court ruling that inferred political meddling during the investigation into ANC president Jacob Zuma.

"This is a legal process - where the law has spoken, the law has spoken," said spokesperson Carl Niehaus on Wednesday.

He said the party had full acceptance of whatever the decisions of the courts were, and Zuma had previously said so himself.

On Monday the court ordered that the application should be dismissed as "it is not in the interests of justice to hear the applications at this stage".

Appeal

Mbeki's spokesperson Mukoni Ratshitanga was not immediately available for comment, but in Mbeki's urgent application for direct access to the court, he had hoped to argue that the findings of political meddling during the Zuma investigation, in the Nicholson judgment were made without affording him a hearing and constituted a violation of his constitutional rights.

He had hoped to set aside the findings in the judgment concerning himself or any member of the national executive who were not afforded a hearing in the Zuma matter.

In September Judge Chris Nicholson handed down a judgment which led to the corruption charges against the ANC president being set aside.

He had been expected to pronounce only whether Zuma had been entitled to make representations to the National Prosecuting Authority before the NPA charged him for a second time, after the first attempt was struck off the roll.

Political interference

But, he also commented on allegations of political interference in the Zuma investigation, which the NPA had asked be struck out of the record.

Turning to these, Nicholson's judgment questioned the relationship between Mbeki, respective justice ministers and heads of the NPA, saying there should be no relationship at all in terms of the independence of the prosecuting authority and found that Zuma's contention of political meddling had some merit.

Following this judgment, which was regarded as clearing the way for Zuma to become president, Mbeki stepped down after being asked to resign by the ruling ANC.

A new president, Kgalema Motlanthe, and some new Cabinet ministers were also installed.

In his court papers, Mbeki said: "I respectfully submit that it was not necessary for the learned judge to make the findings I am appealing against, or seeking to set aside, in order for him to decide the real issue that was before him.

- SAPA