The current stand-off between former South African president Jacob Zuma and the authorities has wider political ramifications for South Africa's fledgling democracy. The 79- year-old Mr Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in prison by the Constitutional Court, the country’s highest court, after he was found guilty for being in contempt. This followed his refusal to appear before a corruption inquiry presided over by South Africa's deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo. The inquiry's official name is the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. It was set up a few years ago primarily to investigate allegations of corruption involving Mr Zuma's family friends, the notorious Gupta brothers, and their allegedly undue influence over government officials in return for lucrative contracts.
In response to the Constitutional Court's ruling, throngs of Mr Zuma's supporters descended upon his village – Nkandla, in the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal province - to prevent him from being arrested. Some of the supporters were armed to the teeth with rifles, pistols, spears and machetes, chanting pro Zuma slogans such as "Wenzeni uZuma; (What has Zuma done) and "we are prepared to die for Zuma!" Mr Zuma has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. He claims instead that the inquiry is a political witch hunt against him, his family and those around him. Since he left his position as head of state in 2018 he has not been sitting in a rocking chair enjoying the beautiful sunsets over the rolling hills of Kwadakudunuse, his homestead. Instead, he spends most of his time with legal counsels working on voluminous court documents, defending himself against accusations of corruption.
However, the "unappealable" sentence by South Africa's apex court has indeed brought matters to a head. Some said he had reached a dead end while others praised him for finding every loophole in the justice system to challenge even the Constitutional Court's ruling. Mr Zuma insists that he has been treated unfairly. When the Harvard University-educated Justice Sisi Khampepe delivered the majority verdict of seven constitutional judges, with only two dissenting, she did not mince her words. "The Constitutional Court went to great lengths to safeguard Mr Zuma's rights. Consequently, there is simply no sound nor logical basis on which he can claim to have been treated unfairly” she said.
Apart from a potential bloodbath, the Nkandla stand-off threatened to undermine the rule of law. There are serious implications this could have had on other litigants in future including possibly hundreds absconding from courts and ignoring legal judgements. It would have been a precedence detrimental to SA’s young democracy. Justice Khampepe emphasised this point in his judgement,"it is disturbing that he who twice sought allegiance to the republic, its laws and its constitution has sought to ignore, undermine and in many ways destroy the rule of law altogether." The sentence has created a split within the political opinion of the governing African National Congress (ANC). The ANC of Nelson Mandela is now tearing itself asunder, in part because of these developments. In fact, most of the angry supporters who camped outside Mr Zuma's multi-million- dollar compound were ANC members. They were wearing ANC t-shirts bearing the face of Mr Zuma. What President Cyril Ramaphosa describes as a unity movement is slowly slipping away through his fingers. The 109- year-old liberation movement is now in disarray. Trying to unify the ANC is like trying to nail jelly to the ceiling. However, it is not just judicial institutions that are affected, the integrity of the South African Police Services (SAPS) was also hugely impacted. Police stood by as hundreds gathered at Nkandla without masks and in total violation of Covid-19 regulations. The minister of SAPS Bheki Cele defended police’s inaction citing lessons from the Marikana mine massacre when striking miners were gunned down in a daggers drawn stand- off with public order police in August 2012. "We are very glad to absorb any criticism (rather) than dealing with blood, that would have been spilled there. We implemented some of the Marikana Commission recommendations to save lives. So, no bloodshed - for now” Cele told journalists. Furthermore, Zuma challenged the majority judgement of the Constitutional court, the highest court in the land, setting a new precedent by applying to the lower court; in this case the High Court in Pietermaritzburg for the stay of execution of his arrest. In the meantime, pending the outcome in the High Court in Pietermaritzburg; Jacob Zuma surrendered to the police just before midnight on 06 July. His surrender emphasises the fact that “no one is above the law.
In conclusion, given that South Africa is one of the most unequal countries in the world with high unemployment and poverty rates, it goes without saying that the internal squabbles within the governing ANC will only exacerbate an already precarious situation. Having said that, the events of the past week in Nkandla have strengthened democracy in SA. Importantly, they have further exposed many South Africans to mechanisms of the judicial systems and the importance of its independence.