Johannesburg – Former South African president, Jacob Zuma, may have dodged a bullet and not hand himself over for custody to serve his prison sentence tomorrow.
The Constitutional Court will on Monday, July 12, hear Zuma’s urgent application to rescind its order sentencing him to jail for 15 months for contempt of court.
The ConCourt issued the directions on Saturday, after Zuma made the application on Friday. It did not state if Zuma still had to hand himself over to the police on Sunday though.
In Zuma’s application, the former president maintained that he was not guilty in contempt of court and that sending him to prison would amount to a “death sentence”.
Zuma was on Tuesday found guilty of contempt of court following his decision to defy summons ordering him to appear at the Zondo commission investigating allegations of state capture during his 10-year tenure as state president.
In a landmark ruling, the Constitutional Court said Zuma had disrespected the rule of law sending him to 15 months direct imprisonment.
But his throngs of supporters who have converged to the former statesman eNkandla homestead comprising ex- MK combatants, taxi associations and amabutho have threatened that blood will be shed should Zuma be arrested.
Under pressure and fearing that the tense situation might escalate to a full-scale civil war, the ANC top brass in the eleventh hour postponed an all-important NEC meeting which was scheduled to sit this weekend.
“In arriving at this decision, the national officials were mindful of the situation developing in KwaZulu-Natal and the need for ANC to give clear and principled leadership to ensure the maintenance of the rule of law and avoid any violence, injury or loss of life,” read the statement.
View the order by the Con-Court below:
Also read: Historic week for SA after Constitutional Court sentenced Zuma to prison
ANC again bows to Zuma’s demands
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