$2.5bn Arms Deal: I am innocent says Zuma
News & Trends •
businessman siya khoza said he admired zumas determination to bring in economic policies that he said were designedto spread the wealth in what remains one of the worlds most unequal societies1 former south african president jacob zuma told thousands ofsupporters outside court in durban on friday that his opponents were telling lies and he would be proveninnocent in a corruption case against him1 the truth will come out. what have i done zuma told the cheering crowd1 i am innocent until proven guilty1 the durban high court adjourned until june 8 the case of corruption in a 2.5 billion arms deal dollars filed against zuma.1 zumas legal team and lawyers for the state agreed to the postponement to give both sides time to prepare their submissions relating to charges against zuma including fraud racketeering and money laundering1 the 75-year-old whose scandal-plagued nine years in office were marked by economic stagnation and credit downgrades faces 16 charges including fraud racketeering and money laundering.1 zuma denies any wrongdoing and is challenging the decision to prosecute the case a dramatic development on a continent where political leaders are rarely held to account for their actions before the law.1 wearing a dark suit a smiling zuma waved to crowds of supporters and reporters as he mounted the steps of the high court in durban shortly before 0700 gmt.1 the speed with which prosecutors have booked his day in court is a sign of the loss of control zuma has suffered since his successor cyril ramaphosa became head of the ruling african national congress anc in december.1 however zuma still retains some popular support especially in his home province of kwazulu-natal where the case is being heard.1 heavily armed police in riot gear lined the square outside the court as thousands of zuma supporters gathered to express solidarity with a leader they say is the victim of a politically motivated witchhunt.1 marchers many clad in the distinctive yellow green and black of the anc carried placards reading hands off zuma and performed the high-stepping toyi-toyi protest dance made popular in south africas decades-long struggle against apartheid.1 speaking in zulu in his home province zuma said that the judiciary and politicians believed that he did not have rights.1 whatever happens we will still support zuma because we believe he brought us radical economic transformation and we still believe that him being in the anc he will push for it said khoza wearing a waistcoat emblazoned in anc colors.1 zuma son edward told supporters at nearby park where several thousand people held an overnight vigil that his father was not worried.1 i would want to believe that as an innocent man he is definitely not worried the domestic news24 agency quoted edward zuma as saying.1 zuma who was forced to resign by the anc last month was at the center of a 1990s deal to buy billions of dollars of european military hardware to upgrade south africas post-apartheid armed forces.1 the deal was mired in scandal and controversy from the start with many inside and outside the anc questioning the spending given the massive social issues from health to education nelson mandelas party had to address after coming to power in 1994.1 fallout has cast a shadow over south african politics ever since1 zuma was deputy president at the time. schabir shaikh his former financial adviser was found guilty and jailed in 2005 for trying to solicit bribes for zuma from a subsidiary of french arms company thales.1 the company is facing charges in the same case1 charges against zuma were filed but then set aside by the national prosecuting authority shortly before he successfully ran for president in 2009.1 the charges were re-instated in 20161 since his election nine years ago his opponents have fought a lengthy legal battle to have the charges reinstated1 zuma countered with his own legal challenges1