Legal fees: Zuma ordered to pay
FORMER president Jacob Zuma has again been ordered to pay back taxpayers’ money – the second time in less than 35 days. Yesterday, the North Gauteng High Court found he was liable to pay between R16 million and R32m for legal fees the Presidency has been paying for his criminal case since 2004 – during Thabo Mbeki’s tenure – while he was deputy president.
The judges ruled that the charges of corruption, fraud, racketeering, money laundering and tax evasion against Zuma, who is due to stand trial in May next year, have nothing to do with the state and his former positions.
A full Bench of the court slammed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to continue paying for Zuma’s legal fees. It said the 783 payments Zuma allegedly received from convicted fraudster and his financial adviser Schabir Shaik were outside his official remuneration, and not in any way connected to his official functions. “The alleged payments or
gratifications were solely for Mr Zuma’s benefit,” the Judges said.
Last month, Zuma was also held personally liable for losing his appeal against a decision to pay for the costs of his appeal when he tried to overturn a ruling made in his legal challenge to block the release of the State of Capture report by former public protector Thuli Madonsela. In 2016, the Constitutional Court ordered him to pay R7.8m for the non-security upgrades at his Nkandla homestead. He secured a loan for the amount from embattled VBS Mutual Bank.
Yesterday, Deputy Judge President Aubrey Ledwaba was scathing in his ruling against the Presidency and State Attorney’s Office for their for failing to properly interpret section 3 of the State Attorney Act, and Treasury regulations.
“These provisions did not authorise the impugned decisions by the Presidency and the State Attorney to procure private legal representatives for Mr Zuma, and for the state to pay for his private legal costs in defending the corruption and other criminal charges against him, and in the ancillary or related civil legal proceedings.”
Political parties and civil society organisations welcomed the decision. DA leader Mmusi Maimane said Ramaphosa should have made Zuma pay for his own defence. “The system of corruption where those who loot the state are then able to defend themselves using public money has been stopped today,” he said.
EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi said the judgment was a milestone in a “greater and broader effort to save the taxpayers’ money from politicians” who used it for their personal needs.
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa praised the judges, saying he was not surprised by their decision. Presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko was not available for comment, while Mbeki’s spokesperson Siyabulela Gebe asked all questions be referred to the Presidency.