Zuma finally gets his day in court

JACOB Zuma is to finally get his highly public and long held wish to get his day in court – after waging an unprecedented legal battle at the taxpayer’s expense for almost 10 years to avoid just that.

Yesterday the National Director of Public Prosecutions, Shaun Abrahams, finally announced that his office had decided that South Africa’s fourth president would face charges – on racketeering, corruption, money laundering and fraud – 18 of them.

These are the same charges based on 783 counts – or instances – of alleged corruption that were scandalously dropped by then NDPP Mokotedi Mpshe on the so-called “Spy Tapes”.

So much has happened since then. The NPA for one has effectively been neutered with Abrahams – derisively known as Shaun The Sheep for his meek refusal to act against the former president.

Indeed, there was a court case underway to prevent him making this decision after a court ruled that he shouldn’t have been NDPP in the first place.

The biggest story though was state capture, the industrial grade looting of state-owned enterprises – primarily by Zuma and his friends, the Gupta family – which eclipses the arms deal corruption that he has now been charged with.

The difference is that, with the successful prosecution and conviction of his erstwhile financial adviser Schabir Shaik on effectively companion charges of corruption, this case against Zuma is almost already proven.

Abrahams’ statement – “I am of the view that there are reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution” – is almost English in its understatement.

The last nine years will rank among the worst in South Africa’s history; scandalous abuse of power, state interference, state capture, corruption and collusion and yet, here we are: the country’s most useless top prosecutor has been the one who has decided to reinstate the charges – even though another court ruling had effectively left him no option but to do so.

The bottom line, though, is that South Africa has once again emerged from a dark tunnel, blinking into the light.

Our institutions work. Our society works. We must just continue our journey of self correction. We dare not squander this opportunity.