AfriForum goes to court to send Zuma back to jail

Civil rights organisation AfriForum has become the latest organisation to officially file a court application in an attempt to send former president Jacob Zuma back to jail.

On Wednesday, the organisation announced it had served an application to the the High Court in Pretoria on an urgent basis for the review of Zuma’s medical parole against six correspondents.

“These respondents are the National Commissioner of Correctional Services, the Medical Parole Board, Zuma himself, the Secretary-General of the Judicial Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture and Fraud in the Public Sector, including organs of state, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and the President of the Republic of South Africa,” reads the statement.

Ernst Roets, head of policy and action at AfriForum, said the matter was of national importance.

He said it was a shame that some people were treated favourably on the basis of their political prestige.

“We regard this application as urgent because this is a clear case of abuse of power by the government on the basis of a person’s political position.

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“It is also clear to us that the applicable legal provisions to release someone on medical parole have not been complied with, which is why we ask in our application that the decision to release Zuma on medical parole be reversed,” said Roets.

Last week, National Commissioner of Correctional Services Arthur Fraser admitted to overruling the parole board’s decision and personally accounted for Zuma’s release.

He cited that he had valid reasons and was ready to provide them to whoever needed them in papers.

“I took the decision to place him on medical parole and I have given a host of reasons. The reasons are available in documentation and will be presented to whoever needs to see,” said Fraser.

ALSO READ: ‘I took the decision’: Arthur Fraser on why he released Zuma against board’s advice

According to Section 75(7)(a) of the Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998: “The National Commissioner may place under correctional supervision or day parole, or grant parole or medical parole to a sentenced offender serving a sentence of incarceration for 24 months or less and prescribe conditions in terms of section 52 or cancel correctional supervision or day parole or parole or medical parole and alter the conditions for community corrections applicable to such person.”

Fraser said his decision to place the former president of on medical parole was “legal and procedural”.