Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla in court. Picture: X/@Phezukwabo_
uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party member Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla has vowed that she would not be silenced and would fight for her father, former President Jacob Zuma.
Zuma-Sambudla made the comments in a statement on Friday evening, a day after her first appearance in the Durban Magistrate’s Court
Zuma-Sambudla faces charges of incitement to commit terrorism, incitement to commit public violence, and incitement to commit violence, read with Section 17 of the Riotous Assemblies Act of 1956.
She was released on a warning.
In her statement, Zuma-Sambudla claimed she was persecuted in the same way that her corruption-accused father was.
“History repeats itself. During apartheid, our people were imprisoned without trial. Today, under the pretence of democracy, my father, President Jacob Zuma is subjected to the same injustice. In a so-called free and democratic South Africa, he is vilified, persecuted, and incarcerated without a fair trial.”
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Zuma-Sambudla said she will no longer remain “silent”.
“For years, I remained silent, even when my father was attacked, ridiculed, and insulted. I endured the pain of witnessing his political persecution while standing by as the daughter of a statesman.
“However, enough is enough! I refuse to be silent any longer. I will stand up for my father as any loving daughter would. Like my mother, Kate, I will fiercely protect my father, my family and our people with the strength, love, and resilience instilled in me,” Zuma-Sambudla said.
Zuma-Sambudla said she wears the charges against her in connection with the July 2021 unrest in South Africa as “a badge of honour”.
“The case brought against me four years later is nothing more than a blatant attempt to intimidate me into silence. But let me be clear: I will not be silenced! This is not just about me, it is about the continued assault on our people, our leaders, and our struggle for total liberation. I will not submit! I will fight to the end!”
During court proceedings, Zuma-Sambudla’s lawyer Advocate Dali Mpofu read out her affidavit in which she said the charges against her are politically motivated, a claim MK party leaders emphasized, without proof, when they addressed supporters outside the court.
“I also hold the strong view that the charges are malicious and politically motivated. They are aimed at settling political scores with my father by the current regime. Evidence in this regard will be led during the trial.”
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National Prosecution Authority (NPA) spokesperson Advocate Mthunzi Mhaga said the case took three years to reach court because it was a complex matter and the claims by the MK party leaders are baseless.
“This is the first time that the NPA is charging based on content posted on what we call X, which was previously known as Twitter, for content we consider to be amounting to be inciting to commit terrorism.
“It’s a unique case, complex in nature, in the sense that reliance on the investigation and evidence is based on social media posts. It’s a technical investigation. It is an investigation that some of the parts of the investigative process has to be outsourced in terms of experts on social media, because Saps [South African Police Service] doesn’t have an expert on social media,” Mhaga said.
The charges against Zuma-Sambudla’s follow a criminal case opened by Forensics for Justice’s Paul O’Sullivan, who provided the police and the NPA with a detailed forensic report documenting every tweet Zuma-Sambudla sent during the riots.
More than 350 people were killed during the July 2021 riots in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.
It is alleged the anarchy was triggered by the arrest of Zuma, who was in contempt of a Constitutional Court order.
During the weeklong mayhem, shops and factories were closed, and the total cost to the economy was said to be more than R50 billion.
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