South Africa's x-President Zuma now behind bars

SOUTH AFRICA - In Brief 08 Jul 2021 by Iraj Abedian

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After a day and night of legal and political high drama, x-President Zuma handed over himself to the police minutes before midnight yesterday. South Africa's constitutional democracy and its entire paradigm of 'equality before law' was on trial in full view of the nation all day and night. Zuma is sentenced to a 15-month jail term by the Constitutional Court for his contempt of court following his refusal to appear at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry to respond to allegations of his complicity in the plundering of public resources when he was the country's president from 2009 to 2018. The Zondo Commission has been given evidence and testimonies that Zuma, his family members, political allies and their business partners extracted 100s of billions (as yet to be fully quantified) from the public sector. Over the past 15 years, Zuma used every legal avenue open to him to avoid accountability in various cases against him. In many ways, the court, and the legal system in general, was his friend all along. Ironically, it is his defiance of the legal system, or contempt of court, that finally terminated his options. When he is out of jail for his contempt of court, his all other cases need to be still accounted for. The eventual imprisonment of Zuma now breaks up a tightly knit network of politically connected criminals. In the weeks ahead, the chances are that within the ANC a number of close allies of Zuma at the national and sub-national levels will be suspended, put on notice, and some even brought to books. So, the vast majority of South Africans woke up this morning somewhat relieved that the country's justice system has prevailed over a dominant and determined political ...