Zuma may return to Zondo commission before year end, lawyer hints

Former president Jacob Zuma’s lawyer Muzi Sikhakhane has hinted that Zuma would be returning to the judicial commission of inquiry into state capture.

Sikhakhane revealed the dates – October 20 or November 11 – during his arguments in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court on Friday.

Former cabinet minister and ANC member Derek Hanekom took Zuma to court to sue him to the tune of R500,000 for defamation after the former president tweeted that Hanekom was a “known enemy agent”.

Hanekom wants the court to order Zuma to apologise for insinuating he was a spy. He also wants the court to bar Zuma from calling him one again, or suggesting he was a spy in future.

But Sikhakhane said they couldn’t block Zuma, adding that when he returned to the Zondo commission, they didn’t know what he would be saying.

Zondo commission of inquiry spokesperson Reverend Mbuyiselo Stemela told News24 that the dates had not yet been confirmed.

“We will issue an advisory when we get close to the time,” he said.

The former president made explosive claims when he appeared at the state capture inquiry in July.

Zuma told the commission that Umkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) council chairperson General Siphiwe Nyanda and Ngoako Ramatlhodi were spies, News24 earlier reported.

Both men hit back, with Ramatlhodi challenging Zuma to a lie detector test and Nyanda saying he would consider cross-examining Zuma at the commission.

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