Zuma takes knife to legal team
Replaces lawyer with former Old Mutual boss’s firebrand Mabuza just weeks ahead of his next court appearance
FORMER President Jacob Zuma has announced a surprise change of his legal team just weeks ahead of his return to the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
In the announcement yesterday through the Jacob Zuma Foundation, the former president said he had terminated the mandate of attorney Daniel Mantsha, who has been his legal representative since 2018.
Mantsha is set to be replaced by Joburg-based attorney Eric Mabuza who in the past had scored some legal victories for former Old Mutual boss Peter Moyo and former SA Revenue Services’ (Sars) commissioner Tom Moyane.
In the statement announcing his legal team changes, the foundation said Zuma felt that he had to part ways with Mantsha.
“Former president Zuma has unfortunately come to the conclusion that it is in his best interests to part ways with Mr Mantsha at this stage, so that he can focus more on the preparation for the trial. He has appointed as his new attorneys of record Mabuza Attorney (Eric Mabuza), who will accordingly be responsible for all preparation for the former president Zuma’s muchawaited trial,” read the statement.
Despite the changes, Zuma will keep advocate Muzi Sikhakhane, who has been leading his legal army while fighting to quash the corruption charges and appearing before the Zondo Commission probing allegations of state capture during his presidency between 2009 and 2018.
“Former president Zuma has, however, retained the services of advocate Muzi Sikhakhane as the lead counsel in the matter, and expresses his unreserved trust and confidence in him and his team of counsel,” the foundation said.
Sikhakhane has also been briefed to assemble a multiskilled legal team to advise and assist Zuma “in preparing for the biggest trial of his life and to dispel the much-repeated and tired narrative that seeks to suggest that in previously exercising his rights”, Zuma “sought to avoid his day in court or was adopting what the State calls ‘Stalingrad’ tactics”, the statement said.
The bolstering of the legal team was hoped to help Zuma fend off his long-dragging arms deal corruption case, which he was currently trying to get quashed in the Constitutional Court after the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal without hearing it, saying it had no prospect of success.
Constitutional law expert Lawson Naidoo of the Council for the Advancement of the South African
Constitution (Casac), said there may be a number of reasons why Zuma changed his legal team, and he has the prerogative to do so.
However, Naidoo said this could be another delaying tactic by Zuma who can go to court on May 6 and ask for a postponement to allow Mabuza to familiarise himself with the case.
But Naidoo warned that the court was not likely to grant Zuma his wish, as it can point out that the case has already been delayed several times and it was Zuma himself who decided to change his legal team at the last minute.
“I think it’s unlikely, they may well try to use that argument… Clearly, it’s part of the strategy to delay it. I think it might be a strategy that could be used, but I don’t think it will be a successful one,” Naidoo said.
With the country under lockdown until April 30, and an extension is on the cards that the hearing on May 6 might not proceed, he said.