Zuma placed on medical parole
Zuma was jailed for defying a Constitutional Court order to give evidence at an inquiry investigating high-level corruption during his nine years in office until 2018.
FORMER president Jacob Zuma has been placed on medical parole due to his ill health.
This was revealed by the Department of Correctional Services in a statement this afternoon (September 5). According to the statement, the 79-year-old’s eligibility for medical parole follows a medical report received by the Department of Correctional Services.
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Zuma was serving a 15-month sentence in Estcourt Correctional Center for contempt of court when he underwent an unspecified surgery at an outside hospital where he had been sent for observation, last month.
According to reports, Zuma was jailed for defying a Constitutional Court order to give evidence at an inquiry investigating high-level corruption during his nine years in office until 2018.
The department said when Zuma handed himself in on July 7, protests by his supporters escalated into riots involving looting and arson that President Cyril Ramaphosa described as an “insurrection”.
In its statement, the department said, “Medical parole placement for Mr Zuma means that he will complete the remainder of the sentence in the system of community corrections, whereby he must comply with a specific set of conditions and will be subjected to supervision until his sentence expires.”
“We want to reiterate that placement on medical parole is an option available to all sentenced offenders provided they meet all the requirements. We want all South Africans to afford Mr Zuma dignity as he continues medical treatment,” read the statement.
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