The vigil for African National Congress president Jacob Zuma got off to a slow start with less than 1Â 000 die-hard supporters braving the cold in Pietermaritzburg’s Market Square on Sunday night by 9pm.
Church Street was closed to traffic, as well as the area around the Pietermaritzburg High Court, which will hear Zuma’s application to have the decision to prosecute him declared unlawful.
A stage and screen had been erected, and music was blaring over a public-address system.
South African Communist Party supporters — clad in red — arrived singing and chanting slogans. Some had vuvuzelas and others were blowing whistles, while others were carrying fake machine guns in support of Zuma.
Earlier in the evening, scores of local and foreign media representatives besieged justice department officials in a bid to gain access to the court on Monday. However, with only 20 seats available to the media, many were disappointed.
Zuma believes that the state — having reversed a 2003 decision by former national director of public prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka not to prosecute him — was obliged in terms of the Constitution and the National Prosecuting Authority Act of 1998 to give him the opportunity to make representations before it decided to prosecute him in 2005 and 2007.
However, the state contends that when Judge Herbert Msimang struck the case against Zuma from the roll in September 2006, this meant there could be no review of Ngcuka’s decision not to prosecute him.
Zuma’s lawyer, Michael Hulley, had written to the NPA on October 11 2007, requesting ”an opportunity to be heard”.
The state contended that Hulley had been told by the acting national director of public prosecutions Mokotedi Mpshe that he would not be able to make representations.
”When the acting NDPP declined their request in his reply of 12 October 2007, they did not protest as they would have done if they had any real expectation of a hearing.”
Zuma was charged on December 28 2007 with racketeering, four charges of corruption, a charge of money laundering and 12 charges of fraud.
Judge Chris Nicholson will hear the case and will be assisted by Advocate Griffiths Madonsela and private attorney Ranjit JP Purshotam.
Advocate Kemp J Kemp will lead the argument for Zuma, while advocate Wim Trengove will lead the state’s case.
The two faced off in the Constitutional Court in March when Zuma and his co-accused French arms manufacturer Thint attempted to have controversial August 2005 search-and-seizure raids declared unconstitutional.
The outcome of that battle was announced last Thursday and apart from one of the judges, Judge Sandile Ngcobo, who gave a dissenting view, the Constitutional Court ruled in favour of the state.
However, the last time Trengove and Kemp faced off in Pietermaritzburg in September 2006, Judge Msimang struck the case from the roll — after refusing to grant the state the postponement it had been seeking.
Police spokesperson Superintendent Vincent Mdunge said on Sunday that extra police officers had been deployed to Pietermaritzburg.
”We have contingency plans in place and we are ready for any eventuality,” he said.
On Thursday the ANC Youth League’s KwaZulu-Natal provincial leadership announced that Pietermaritzburg ”will not move” during the two days that Zuma is in court.
Hotels and lodges in the city were reported to be fully booked. – Sapa