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- Former President Jacob Zuma criticized Supreme Court Vice President Raymond Zondo for “playing politics” in his handling of the state’s arrest investigation.
- Zuma has doubled down on his earlier decision not to appear before the commission.
- Zondo said Monday that the Constitutional Court will have to decide whether Zuma is in contempt of court for failing to obey an order to appear before the investigation.
Former President Jacob Zuma has doubled down on his decision not to appear before the Zondo Commission, once again criticizing the commission for, in his opinion, not conducting a fair and independent investigation.
In a 12-page statement released Monday night, Zuma said he will wait for the Constitutional Court to make a decision on whether he is in contempt of court.
Hours earlier, Zuma did not appear before the commission, and the commission said it will go to the higher court to determine whether Zuma should be arrested for contempt of court.
READ | State apprehension commission will ask ConCourt to jail Zuma if found in contempt of court
In the statement, Zuma said that he stands by his previous word not to appear before the commission. He continued: “and no amount of intimidation or blackmail will change my position, as I firmly believe that we should never allow the establishment of a judiciary in which justice, fairness and due process are discretionary and preserved exclusively for certain litigants and not for others “. . “
He said:
“The Zondo Commission has again demonstrated today (Monday) that it lacks the necessary attributes to carry out an investigation or independent, fair and impartial hearings that involve me or that contradict its script on the capture of the State.”
Zuma accused the chairman of the commission, Supreme Court Vice President Raymond Zondo, of wanting to “turn all the narratives against me into evidence.”
‘Do politics to influence public opinion’
He said that evidence leader Paul Pretorius had “presented what Supreme Court Vice President Zondo literally called evidence against me. Realizing they had missed the opportunity to present the evidence to me, they did what has become their hallmark. in the Commission by introducing themselves to each other and doing politics to influence public opinion. “
Zuma warned that Zondo “could mislead the nation” regarding Zuma’s role in the state capture accusations.
READ | ‘Hands off Zuma’: Ace Magashule comes out in defense of former president for defying ConCourt’s order
“Those who know the truth will know that when my legal team made this reference, it was in the context of an example and a suggestion of how a more responsible path could be found.
“The Vice President of the Supreme Court concluded by saying that my contempt constitutes reason for him to approach the Constitutional Court to request a sentence. Of course he will obtain it. I am not sure that normally this is how contempt proceedings would begin, but I have agreed that the vice president of the Supreme Court Zondo and due process and the law are estranged. “
He explained that he made the decision not to appear before the investigation “not to undermine the Constitution but to vindicate it, before what I see as a few in the judiciary who have long since abandoned their constitutional station to join the political battles.”
He added: “Fed up with outright lies, the Constitutional Court assumed that I or my legal team had threatened to challenge or refuse to respond.
“You only have to examine the records of the date of the disqualification request to know that my legal team endeavored to suggest a responsible path forward. The Commission’s submission that a threat was made that I would challenge or refuse to respond is a flagrant fabricated falsehood … “
He went on to say: “I maintain my reservations and that the Commission was conceptualized as part of the campaign and sponsored multisectoral collaboration to remove me from my position.
Zuma said the investigation is not interested in defending the Constitution, but rather wanted to see him “lynched and punished.”
He said, “I demand nothing but justice, fairness, and fairness, all of which are attributes that we shouldn’t have to remind some of our judges to possess. They promised the country that they possessed these attributes the day they applied for judicial office and took their oath in office. We shouldn’t have to remind some of them. “
On the other hand, Zuma said he was grateful to those who have supported him. “I am grateful for your support and your courage in supporting me rather than appeasing, at my expense, those who seek to control our economy, the judiciary and our country.”
