Former President Jacob Zuma. Picture: Michel Bega
Legal expert Mpumelelo Zikalala says Jacob Zuma’s legal challenges are not looking good.
This as the former president tries to get the arms deal lead prosecutor in his corruption case, Advocate Billy Downer, to step down.
Zuma appeared in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Thursday to appeal the same court’s June 7 ruling, which set aside his private prosecution of Downer and journalist Karyn Maughan finding it was “an attempt to further delay the criminal prosecution” against him.
Downer and Maughan subsequently lodged an enforcement appeal, asking the high court for an order to block Zuma from further pursuing private prosecution against them while he appealed the matter.
Zuma is now appealing against the ruling, with the court yet to decide whether the appearance of Downer and Maughan should go ahead next week.
Judgment has been reserved.
ALSO READ: State asks court to reject Zuma’s bid to remove Downer from arms deal trial
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) earlier this month unanimously dismissed Zuma’s bid to challenge the enforcement of the ruling invalidating his private prosecution of Downer and Maughan.
However, the former president has now turned to the Constitutional Court in a bid to overturn an order which makes the invalidation of his private prosecution of Downer and Maughan, immediately enforceable.
Zikalala told The Citizen the ConCourt has to “entertain” Zuma’s application on the SCA ruling.
“We all have a constitutional right, including the president to have any disputes that we might have with any other individual being adjudicated in the court of law. The Constitutional Court will be missing a very important step of telling us the legal practice and also the knowledge of the public, how to execute a private prosecution process in a manner that is going to comply with all the laws that are there. “
Zikalala said things are not looking good for Zuma.
“The Constitutional Court can come back and say let’s look at the protection of the rights of all the individuals. Every single litigant has a right to protect their legal interest and we are going to uphold this particular matter in that particular stance. But as it stands now and the decision by the SCA, it’s not looking good for the former president.”
Zikalala said Zuma’s arms deal corruption trial may only get underway next year.
“With all things remaining equal, and after the judgment for yesterday’s proceeding, I think maybe by June or July next year we should be able to see the first witness going into the witness box. If any of the parties lose, they’re going to want to go to the SCA and then the Constitutional Court and then maybe that’s where the delay is going to be.
“But another thing which maybe should be a topic for another day would be, I wish also the JSC can investigate why these matters are taking so long to be adjudicated by these courts. If it were ordinary members of the public who are waiting to be paid, for example due to a labour dispute, they are waiting for two or three months without any direction as to what is happening with their matter. So what’s taking so long for this matter to be finalised and what’s the impact of that?” said Zikalala.
During proceedings on Thursday, state advocate Geoff Budlender said if Downer was to be removed as lead prosecutor in Zuma’s arms-deal trial, it would be the beginning of a “Stalingrad festival” with complaints against every replacement prosecutor.
The 81-year-old Zuma and French arms manufacturer Thales are facing multiple charges, including fraud‚ corruption, money laundering, and racketeering, in connection with the controversial multibillion-rand arms deal procurement concluded in the late 1990s while he was vice president.
ALSO READ: Zuma trial: ‘Downer can’t be a prosecutor and accused in same matter’ – Mpofu
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