‘You are just repeating yourself over and over,’ court tells lawyer in Zuma corruption case

In a bid to convince the court to grant arms manufacturing company Thales, implicated in ex-president Jacob Zuma’s court battle, a permanent stay of prosecution of criminal charges, Advocate Anton Katz managed to frustrate the judges who criticised his arguments and repetition.

The arms company is accused of paying Zuma an annual R500,000 bribe to use his political influence to protect them from being implicated in the controversial multibillion-rand arms deal which came to light in 2003.

This deal was said to have been facilitated by Zuma’s then financial adviser Schabir Shaik who was the only one convicted in the case. Katz argued former National Prosecuting Authority boss Shaun Abrahams was “hellbent” on charging the company along with Zuma and that he acted “irrationally” when dealing with the case against the company.

He also critised how Abrahams used the National Prosecuting Authority Act to deal with the matter. The judges continuously expressed their frustration with his arguments and complained he was being repetitive.

“When you make the argument over and over, we lose it. Let’s just digest it. Sometimes a lawyer makes a good argument but ruins it by repeating themself,” said Judge Thoba Poyo-Dlwati. Advocate Mushahida Adhikar, also representing Thales, said the people who were responsible for paying the bribes were no longer with the company and one was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Poyo-Dlwati asked why a medical report was not submitted to the court to make an informed judgment. After supporters flooded the park opposite the High Court in Pietermaritzburg on Monday, spending the day celebrating Zuma, the park was eerily empty yesterday.

Amid rumours that organisers were facing a financial crisis to bus in and feed the Zuma supporters, Bishop Vusi Dube, a coordinator of the support group, said this was nonsense. He said they had never had financial issues and supporters had paid out of “their own pockets” to be there. He said the only reason they were not there yesterday was because transport yesterday was not in the plan.

“It was our arrangement not to bus people in today [yesterday]. Our transport arrangement was always for Monday, Thursday and Friday.

“The people there today [yesterday] are “walk-ins” that are going to be listening to the case.

“The things that are going to be discussed in court are very technical, so if we had brought our people, what would they have heard from our leader [Zuma]? It is not necessary for him to be addressing them on the technical issues in the court.”

Court proceedings continue tomorrow.

– chisomj@citizen.co.za

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.