South Africa: A House Of Cards

SOUTH AFRICA

A House of Cards

A long-awaited corruption trial against former South African President Jacob Zuma was postponed to February after his lawyers filed an appeal against an earlier court ruling against his attempt to dismiss the charges.

Zuma faces 16 charges of fraud, corruption and racketeering related to an arms deal in the 1990s, Agence France-Presse reported.

The former president is alleged to have made about $270,000 in kickbacks from a deal with French arms manufacturer Thales during his time as deputy president in Thabo Mbeki’s administration.

Zuma has denied all charges and argues that politics is playing a significant role in his prosecution.

The ruling African National Congress (ANC) party forced Zuma to resign last year after almost a decade in office due to escalating pressure from the public over corruption allegations.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, who took over from Zuma, has made the fight against corruption one of his top priorities, but faces opposition from many ANC members still loyal to Zuma.

Meanwhile, some analysts say the trial could see Zuma dragging down many top officials of the ANC, the party of Nelson Mandela, which has governed the country since the end of apartheid in 1994.