South Africa: Zuma Faces New Charges After Ruling

Prosecutors have confirmed ANC leader Jacob Zuma will stand
trial for corruption. (AFP: Alexander Joe)

From The New York Times:

JOHANNESBURG—A South African appellate court ruled Monday that graft charges against Jacob Zuma, the leader of the governing party and most likely this country’s next president, were wrongly dismissed by a judge last September, clearing the way for the criminal case to be reinstated.

With elections only a few months away, and with Mr. Zuma’s party politically dominant, this creates a scenario in which he may well assume the nation’s highest office while facing 12 counts of fraud, two more of corruption and one each of money laundering and racketeering.

Immediately after Monday’s unanimous ruling by a five-judge panel was read on national television, the African National Congress, Mr. Zuma’s party, issued a statement of support for its presidential choice, insisting it would not allow “a decision democratically taken” by its members to “be reversed on the basis of untested allegations.”

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My Comment: This is going to fracture the ANC. Will Jacob Zuma respect the rule of law .... if African history is any indication, the odds are that he will not.