By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Lobby group AfriForum will oppose former president Jacob Zuma’s application in the High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday.
The decision comes after Zuma’s legal team confirmed that it would be appealing the High Court decision to set aside the decision by former correctional services commissioner Arthur Fraser to place him on medical parole.
Last week, the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ruled that the decision to grant Zuma medical parole was unlawful. The court also ordered that Zuma return to jail and that the time he had spent out of jail, on medical parole, would not count towards his sentence.
On Tuesday, AfriForum’s legal team will “present reasons why Zuma’s attempt for leave of appeal against the North Gauteng High Court’s ruling that the decision to grant him medical parole was illegal”, said AfriForum’s head of policy and action Ernst Roets.
“Zuma’s legal team will on the same day appear in court to argue why they want to appeal against the verdict. AfriForum’s legal team is of the opinion that Zuma’s appeal application does not have any reasonable chance to succeed,” said Roets.
AfriForum described Zuma’s appeal as “simply a waste of the court’s time”.
The Department of Correctional Services is also challenging the ruling and has filed a 22-page application to appeal the ruling that former national commissioner of correctional services Arthur Fraser’s decision to release Zuma on medical parole was unlawful and that he should return to prison.