Experts say South Africans are more interested in what happened during former President Jacob Zuma’s administration and care less about his defiance and questioning the credibility of the State Capture Commission.
On Monday, the former President released a statement vowing to defy a ruling by the Constitutional Court compelling him to appear before the Commission and answer questions posed to him.
Zuma says he will not cooperate with the Commission – daring them to arrest him if they so wish.
The former President dared the courts and the Zondo Commission to arrest and convict him if they wanted. Zuma has questioned the credibility of the commission and the courts saying the country’s judiciary has thrown out the rule of fairness and made rulings that are meant to deal with him.
Legal experts say it’s ‘too late’ to question Zondo Commission’s credibility
However, Politics Lecturer at the University of the North West Dr Oshupeng Maseng said dismantling the Commission now because some witnesses are not happy will be setting a bad precedent.
Maseng says, “What would be the perception created to South Africans who are actually funding the bill of the Commission if you say now we have to dismantle the Commission?”
Maseng says the Commission is necessary as South Africans want to know what happened.
Meanwhile, legal expert Casper Badenhorst says if indeed the former President is not going to abide by the order of the apex court, the Commission will have to obtain an order finding him in contempt.
We have a press statement from kwaDakwadunuse.#StateCaptureInquiry #ZondoCommission pic.twitter.com/I1NAZqopr8
— Khaya Sithole (@CoruscaKhaya) February 1, 2021
The video below is on Zuma defying a court order to appear at State Capture Inquiry:
Zuma vows not to participate in State Capture Inquiry
Former president Jacob Zuma has reacted to last week’s Constitutional Court ruling, saying he will not co-operate with the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.
The court ruled that he is compelled to appear before the Commission and will not be allowed to exercise his right to keep silent.
In a statement, Zuma also says he does not fear being arrested and claims that the court has been politicised.
In November 2020, Zuma walked out of the Commission without the Chairperson’s permission, after failing in his bid to have Deputy Justice Raymond Zondo recusing himself as the Commission’s presiding officer.
The former head of State says the Zondo Commission should have been named the ‘Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture against Zuma’ as he feels he is the target.
He alleges that the recent decision of the Constitutional Court also mimics the posture of the Commission in that it has now also created a special and different set of circumstances rendering him completely defenceless against the Commission.
Zuma also claims that initially he was informed by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng that the Commission would be chaired by Judge Siraj Desai and was surprised when Zondo was chosen to chair.
Zuma has been summoned to appear before the commission later this month.
Justice Christopher Jafta delivers the judgment against Zuma:
