Former deputy president Jacob Zuma will reject any plea bargain offered by the state in his corruption trial, his lawyer, Michael Hulley, said on Wednesday.
”The likelihood of a plea bargain being accepted is nil,” Hulley said. ”Part of the process of plea bargaining involves the accused person acknowledging guilt — in essence a guilty plea.
”That has been consistently not Mr Zuma’s version of what has taken place.”
Hulley said no offer has been made to date, and there is no indication of one coming — except through the media.
Business Day newspaper reported on Wednesday that the Scorpions special investigating unit had signalled its preparedness to entertain a plea bargain with Zuma — possibly resulting in a non-custodial sentence.
Hulley said his instructions are that Zuma maintains his innocence.
”We have no knowledge of the allegations, and dispute what the state is saying.”
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi said he is not aware of any intention by the state to initiate a plea-bargain process with Zuma — but the possibility cannot be ruled out.
For a plea bargain to be offered, a number of conditions have to be met, he said. These include that the accused person has to plead guilty to the specified charges, and that the investigating officer approves of the idea.
The interests of the community and the personal circumstances of the accused person are also taken into account, Nkosi said.
Asked if the required conditions could be met in Zuma’s case, he said: ”I cannot say that.”
Were Zuma to plead guilty and receive a non-custodial sentence, this could theoretically pave the way for him to become the country’s next president.
A person is not allowed to hold public office if sentenced to 12 months or more in jail without the option of a fine.
The Star newspaper reported that Zuma will receive a list of 105 potential state witnesses — including politicians, business people, lawyers and investigators.
The list is attached to a provisional indictment due to be presented to Zuma when he appears in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Saturday for his case to be referred to the high court for trial.
The trial is to get under way on July 31 next year.
On the witness list are Independent Democrats leader Patricia de Lille, Nelson Mandela’s former attorney Ismail Ayob and businessman Richard Young.
The Star quoted the African National Congress in KwaZulu-Natal as saying it will seek to ensure Zuma’s court appearance on Saturday is incident free.
ANC marshals will be on duty around the court building, where thousands of Zuma supporters are expected.
His previous appearance saw supporters burning T-shirts bearing the image of President Thabo Mbeki.
Mbeki fired his deputy following the conviction of Zuma’s legal adviser Schabir Shaik on charges related to a ”generally corrupt relationship” between the pair. — Sapa