African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma will appear in the Durban High Court on Tuesday for its endorsement of the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) withdrawal of the charges against him.
”In terms of the law, the decision to withdraw charges has to be referred to a high court judge to formally endorse it,” the ANC said in a statement on Monday.
”No questions will be posed to Zuma as his appearance is a matter of formality,” it said.
The hearing starts at 10am.
The NPA announced on Monday that the fraud and corruption charges against Zuma were being dropped because there had been an abuse of process by Leonard McCarthy, the former head of the Directorate of Special Operations, known as the Scorpions.
Acting National Director of Public Prosecutions Mokotedi Mpshe said the decision was not based on the merits of the case and that it did ”not amount to an acquittal”.
The Democratic Alliance has announced that its leader, Helen Zille, intends filing an application in the Pretoria High Court for a judicial review of the decision.
Zuma’s supporters are, meanwhile, calling for a review of the prosecuting authorities.
The ANC, the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party have welcomed the NPA’s decision.
Zuma’s lawyer, Michael Hulley, said his client would address the nation on the decision at the opportune moment. — Sapa