Pietermaritzburg – With temperatures rising in KwaZulu-Natal, former president Jacob Zuma arrived just after lunch at the Pietermaritzburg Police station in the Msunduzi municipality where he laid a charge against the NPA's advocate Billy Downer SC for allegedly leaking his confidential medical records.
Zuma, who is on medical parole from a 15-month sentence after being found guilty of contempt by the Constitutional Court, wants Downer to recuse himself in the Arms Deal corruption trial.
The former president was given a cheerful welcome by supporters outside the police station upon his arrival.
Zuma was accompanied by his security team and daughter Duduzile Zuma. Radical economic transformation champion Nkosentsha Shezi was also present at the police station, saying that he was hopeful but Zuma's case had been poisoned by an unfair legal system.
"I am hopeful, however the environment in which any court proceeding that is brought against Jacob Zuma has happened in an environment that is poisoned by a somewhat unfair legal system. What seems to be a pre-empted or preconceived judgment in whatever case the justice system has brought against Jacob Zuma," Shezi said.
The NPA on Thursday noted the charges that were been brought against Downer, saying that they are for the alleged breach of section 46 (1) of the NPA which prohibits disclosing information without permission of the national director.
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"The NPA is committed to upholding due process and the rule of law and will assess the merits of the charges in an objective manner. We also note that these charges are laid while the matter is subject to judicial determination by the High Court in Pietermaritzburg and judgment is expected to be delivered on October 26," the NPA's spokesperson advocate Mthunzi Mhaga said.
The NPA said, however, that it was concerned with the context that the charges were laid against Downer. It said Downer’s reputation spoke for itself.
Political Bureau