The Jacob Zuma Foundation has announced that the application brought by President Cyril Ramaphosa against former President Jacob Zuma has been rescheduled.
The application is scheduled to be heard in the Johannesburg High Court on Tuesday.
Zuma filed his answering affidavit opposing Ramaphosa’s urgent application to the High Court in Johannesburg to bar the former president from pursuing personal prosecutions against him.
Zuma said there was no urgency about the matter and “whatever urgency there is can be created on its own”.
Rescheduled
Mzwanele Manyi of the Jacob Zuma Foundation said the application will now be argued on Thursday 12 January 2023 in the Johannesburg High Court “as directed by the Judge assigned to the matter.”
“The opposing affidavits for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondent is 12h00 on January 9, 2023. The applicant to file an answer to the affidavit on January 10, 2023 by 12h00. All parties to submit the chief argument on January 11, 2023 at 12h00. The case will be heard on January 12, 2023.
“So, headlines that scream “Zuma missed deadline” are fake news. The deadline that counts is what the judges set,” Manyi said.
Private prosecution
Zuma launched a personal prosecution of Ramaphosa on the eve of the African National Congress (ANC) national elective conference, accusing the president of being an “accessory after the fact” in the alleged criminal offense against Advocate William Downer, who was accused of not properly representing him. information in terms of the NPA Act.
Ramaphosa gave Zuma until December 21 to withdraw the summons, but Zuma insisted on prosecuting him and he must appear in court on January 19.
Also read: Karyn Maughan challenges prosecution as ‘dead end’ to ‘prevent the inevitable’ – Zuma
Ramaphosa is back
In his application, Ramaphosa said that under the Criminal Procedure Act, private prosecutions can only be instituted after individual prosecutors obtain a certificate of non-prosecution.
“Mr. “Zuma has not issued the certificate with the allegations in the name of President Ramaphosa and the summons given to the President is completely substandard and shows disregard for the law,” Ramaphosa said, adding that the personal prosecution against him was “illegal” and “unconstitutional”.
Ramaphosa’s affidavit ‘broken’
In response to the affidavit opposing Ramaphosa’s urgent application, Zuma said the president’s affidavit was “flawed, extremely harsh, reckless and vexatious”.
“It will be clearly demonstrated that the application is not urgent and does not deserve the attention of this Court. This is an extreme case of abuse of the process of this Court and is designed to protect the Applicant from responsibility for the alleged criminal acts,” Zuma said in his affidavit.
Additional report by Vahangwele Nemakonde
Also read: ‘Urgency of matter is self-made’ – Zuma files answering affidavit opposing Ramaphosa’s application