Former president Jacob Zuma. Picture: AFP
Former president Jacob Zuma is appearing in the Pietermaritzburg High Court in KwaZulu-Natal on Tuesday, as he attempts to stay the warrant issued for his arrest by the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) last week.
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This comes after Zuma was instructed to hand himself over to a police station in Nkandla or Johannesburg on Sunday (4 July), after being convicted of contempt of court by the ConCourt last week and sentence to 15 months in prison, over his refusal to appear before the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture.
In the ConCourt judgment, then-acting chief justice Sisi Khampepe also directed Police Minister Bheki Cele and National Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole to arrest Zuma within three days should he fail to hand himself over.
However, the ConCourt has since agreed to grant Zuma a rescission hearing on 12 July, where he will attempt to get the apex court to review its custodial censure of his conduct.
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In light of the upcoming rescission proceedings, Cele and Sitole on Monday evening indicated that they would “hold further actions” and not comply with the ConCourt’s instruction to arrest Zuma for failure to present himself to police to begin serving his sentence.
“Our clients are fully aware that the litigation steps taken by Mr Zuma cannot be categorised as appeal processes which in usual cases would have an effect of suspending the operation of a court order,” Cele and Sitole said in a letter issued by the Office of the State Attorney.
Cele faced criticism on Monday for the police’s lack of action in Nkandla when Zuma supporters defied lockdown regulations. No arrests were made, however, Cele said action would be taken in line with the Disaster Management Act and Covid-19 regulations pertaining to gatherings.
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Watch the proceedings live below, courtesy of SABC News.
Additional reporting by Cheryl Kahla