Holding South Africa to ransom
Only a couple of months remain before South Africans go to the polls to cast their vote in the country’s fourth ‘free-and-fair’ democratic elections. Both electorate and political parties are eager to learn when voting will take place. Late last year ther
Night-and-day court decisions
The ruling party has refused every opportunity to conduct a thorough investigation into the arms deal – a decision that must haunt many of today’s political elite. Had they conducted a thorough investigation when allegations of irregularities first surfaced (and dealt conclusively with those irregularities) then the country wouldn’t find itself in the current pickle. Instead, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is doing its best to follow up what leads it can.
Since Zuma was first charged in 2005 the parties to the case have been to court on numerous occasions. But they’ve yet to spend a day arguing the merits of the charges levelled against Zuma. Instead they’ve argued about admissibility of documents – about the validity of collected evidence – and about whether Zuma’s rights were infringed when the charges were laid. They’ve visited the High Court, Supreme Court and Constitutional Court on more occasions than we care to mention – and even spent time getting to know the Mauritian legal system!
The latest court challenges have left many victims – including former president Thabo Mbeki – axed after the controversial Nicholson judgment. The Supreme Court of Appeals subsequently turned that ruling on its head – using words like “erroneous”, “unwarranted” and “incomprehensible” to lambaste Judge Nicholson findings on political meddling. In ‘reversing’ the ruling the SCA turned back the clocks – and created a raft of new challenges for the country. They’ve put the NPA in a position to force Zuma to court to answer criminal charges – a development that could result in the incoming president answering charges of racketeering, corruption, money laundering and fraud early in his first term of office.
Time for a sensible solution
How do we resolve the impasse? ANC supporters would like nothing better than for the NPA to drop all charges. ANC Youth League president, Julius Malema, is particularly vocal, suggesting that the NPA “save the country” by dropping their vendetta against his hero. And he firmly believes Zuma could run the country before the matter is dealt with. “What is wrong with the president of the country being in and out of court?” he asks… What indeed! Allowing Zuma to take power while the charges remain unanswered is a very bad idea.
Can the ANC manufacture a political solution? We think that foisting Zuma on the country already falls into this category. Surely the president could find a way to fend off any further legal challenges once he takes office. The ANC has been quick to deny the possibility of clearing Zuma by changing the constitution. ANC spokesperson Carl Niehaus reminds us that “there’s no intention to changing the Constitution whatsoever!” He says the ANC will seek a legal rather than political solution. What does that leave?
Apart from the NPA dropping the charges, the only way Zuma could ‘clear’ his name prior to the coming election is to enter into a plea bargain with the NPA. This might be his best option – as he could admit guilt – and depending on his sentence – sill be ‘clean’ enough for Parliament. But South Africa deserves better than this after almost two decades of freedom? In our opinion the best outcome will be for the ANC to stick with caretaker president Kgalema Motlanthe until such time as Zuma’s legal battle is over. Once Zuma clears his name in court he could be sworn in as president of South Africa. What better incentive for Zuma’s legal team to speed up their time-consuming defence strategy?
Editor’s thoughts:
Jacob Zuma remains innocent until a court of law finds otherwise. But by stalling his trial for almost four years his legal team is severely testing the nations’ patience. Would you support a move for Kgalema Motlanthe to remain in position as caretaker president until Zuma has his day in court? Add your comment below, or send it to [email protected]
