Jacob Zuma was greeted with a thunderous rendition of Umshini Wami as he walked on to the stage at the University of Johannesburg on Tuesday for an address on access to justice.
”Zuma is going to be the president” was the chant that followed the singing of Zuma’s trademark song, and then, loudly, ”Viva” and ”My president”.
The African National Congress leader waved and put his palms together prayer-like in acknowledgement. He settled into his chair on the stage between vice-chancellor Ihron Rensburg and deputy vice-chancellor Adam Habib as the students continued singing.
Earlier, an excited buzz had filled the main hall. ”I am just here to hear him sing,” joked one of the students queuing for security clearance.
Zuma currently faces a charge of racketeering, four charges of corruption, a charge of money laundering and 12 charges of fraud related to the multibillion-rand government arms deal. He was charged in 2005 but that case was struck from the roll in 2006. He was recharged in December 2007.
On Friday, the Pietermaritzburg High Court is expected to hand down judgement in Zuma’s application to the Pietermaritzburg High Court in which he demands to know why he had not been informed that he was going to be recharged for fraud and corruption.
He has argued that a clause in the National Prosecuting Act said he was entitled to this.
Two Thint companies, Thint Holdings (Southern Africa) and Thint — the South African subsidiaries of the French arms manufacturing giant Thales International (formerly Thomson-CFS) — each face a charge of racketeering and two counts of corruption.
Zuma also plans to lodge an application for a permanent stay of prosecution in an investigation that has so far cost at least R10-million in legal fees.
The ANC leader’s most recent court judgement was an unsuccessful challenge in the Constitutional Court to the validity of search warrants used to gather evidence to be used in the planned trial against him and Thint.
Thousands expected at vigil
The ANC believes the investigation is only political, and it and its alliance partners are lobbying for a ”political solution” to the travails of the man expected to become president after next year’s elections.
The party is expecting at least 5 000 supporters to converge on the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Thursday night.
The ANC’s provincial secretary general, Senzo Mchunu, on Tuesday urged supporters to ”continue displaying the good behaviour that they have shown in all past appearances irrespective of the outcome of judgement handed down on Friday”.
Mchunu, who was speaking at a press conference in Durban, said: ”We, however, still maintain that this is a political case. We stand firm on our call that the NPA [National Prosecuting Authority] should withdraw the charges.”
He said ANC top officials and members of the party’s national executive committee, its provincial executive committee and leaders of alliance partners — the Congress of South African Trade Unions, the South African Communist Party and the South African National Civic Organisation — will also attend Thursday night’s vigil and subsequent rally outside the court buildings.
Mchunu expressed support for recent protests by the party’s eThekwini region, which involved staged marches on police stations and courts in the greater Durban area.
Also on Tuesday, youth leaders said a ”sober judge” would scrap corruption charges against Zuma.
”We believe the court will be sober … No sober judge will be ruling in favour of the prosecution,” said Young Communist League Gauteng secretary Alex Mashilo.
”The NPA has violated its own rules. There is no way that the judge can find in favour of the NPA. If the court rules otherwise … we will unleash a mass struggle campaign,” said Mashilo, explaining this implies marches and pickets.
His colleague, Thabo Kupa, Gauteng ANC Youth League secretary, added: ”If JZ does not win the case … that is actually going to be a crisis.”
Friday’s judgement comes amid a furore over a Zapiro cartoon, published in the Sunday Times, that depicts Zuma about to violate the justice system sexually.