By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
@TrevorSamson.
The Constitutional Court on Tuesday imposed a 15-month sentence on former president Jacob Zuma for defying their order to appear before the State Capture Commission.
Justice Sisi Khampepe read out the judgment on Tuesday, which found that Zuma was fully aware of the consequences of his actions and willfully defied the court’s order to appear before the State Capture Commission.
“The majority holds that a coercive order which uses the threat of imprisonment to ensure compliance will be both futile and inappropriate,” Khampepe said.
She said there was “no sound basis” for Zuma to claim that he was being unfairly treated.
“No person is above the law. An act of defiance has the potential to precipitate a constitutional crisis,”she said.
“The majority finds itself with no choice but to find that this kind of incalcitrance cannot be tolerated,” Khampepe read.
She pointed out that Zuma’s case was exceptional because of his position as a former president as well as his criticism of the judiciary.
The ConCourt justices strongly condemned Zuma’s “outlandish statements” and found that the only reasonable sentence was an unsuspended sentence of 15 months imprisonment.
The court ordered that Zuma should hand himself over to police within five days.
“It is the lofty and lonely work of the judiciary to uphold the Constitution at any and all cost,” said Khampepe as she delivered a blistering judgment for seven of the court’s judges. Two judges dissented in a minority judgment, arguing that a suspended sentence was the correct constitutional remedy for the former president’s failure to obey a court order to attend the commission’s hearings.
The commission laid criminal contempt charges against the former head of state, but the Hawks have made no progress in that case. When Zuma failed to appear before the commission in January, the secretary of the commission, Professor Itumeleng Mosala, appealed to the Constitutional Court, which ordered Zuma’s appearance. He ignored the order, which resulted in the contempt of court direct appeal by the commission to the ConCourt.
The judgment on 29 June was the outcome of that appeal, and the commission succeeded in its appeal for direct punitive imprisonment. It was awarded costs.
Jacob Zuma Foundation spokesperson Mzwanele Manyi, described the ruling as “inconsistent”. He said judges were “cherry-picking what side of the pie is sweeter” as the judgment was not unanimous. Manyi said the judgment was a “sad day today largely because judges are saying it’s unconstitutional” – a statement he made three times. A statement would be issued in “due course” after speaking to lawyers for the former president.
Carl Niehaus, one of Zuma’s biggest supporters, tweeted after the judgment: The imprisonment of @PresJGZuma is totally unacceptable. In fact it is an utter outrage! Now it is our revolutionary democratic right and duty to register our outrage, and resistance to this, in no uncertain terms, and we will! ✊?