South African prosecutors have dropped corruption charges against ruling party leader Jacob Zuma, who is expected to become president, ending a long legal battle that had raised doubts over his ability to govern.
Chief prosecutor Mokotedi Mpshe said the former head of the country’s elite anti-crime unit had manipulated the legal system and cited “abuses of process” uncovered in taped conversations for the decision. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said the case was now closed.
“In light of the above, I have come to the difficult conclusion that it is neither possible, nor desirable for the NPA to continue with the prosecution of Mr Zuma,” Mpshe, acting head of the NPA, told a news conference.
Zuma’s African National Congress (ANC) is widely expected to win an April 22 election and choose him as president of Africa’s biggest economy.
Dropping the corruption, fraud, money laundering and racketeering charges ends a case that has dragged on for eight years and damaged Zuma’s credibility as a leader.
The case has been closely followed by investors looking for political stability in Africa’s biggest economy and has raised questions about the independence of South Africa’s judiciary.
Mpshe called for an investigation into the abuses of process but said there was no conclusive evidence that former president Thabo Mbeki — Zuma’s arch foe — was involved.
Zuma has said he has been the victim of a political conspiracy ,while his opponents have accused the ANC of back-room deals to clear his name.
Zuma denies wrongdoing. His lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
Seeing the charges dropped would be a great relief for the resilient Zuma after a battle to clear his name.
But he still has to deliver on promises to spend more on millions of poor South Africans while reassuring investors who worry he could steer the economy to the left.
ANC supporters have become increasingly disillusioned with corruption scandals and the power struggles that saw Mbeki pushed out of office.
In the sweltering streets of Jakarta, buskers carry towering, hollow puppets and pass around a bucket for donations. Now, they fear becoming outlaws. City authorities said they would crack down on use of the sacred ondel-ondel puppets, which can stand as tall as a truck, and they are drafting legislation to remove what they view as a street nuisance. Performances featuring the puppets — originally used by Jakarta’s Betawi people to ward off evil spirits — would be allowed only at set events. The ban could leave many ondel-ondel buskers in Jakarta jobless. “I am confused and anxious. I fear getting raided or even
Eleven people, including a former minister, were arrested in Serbia on Friday over a train station disaster in which 16 people died. The concrete canopy of the newly renovated station in the northern city of Novi Sad collapsed on Nov. 1, 2024 in a disaster widely blamed on corruption and poor oversight. It sparked a wave of student-led protests and led to the resignation of then-Serbian prime minister Milos Vucevic and the fall of his government. The public prosecutor’s office in Novi Sad opened an investigation into the accident and deaths. In February, the public prosecutor’s office for organized crime opened another probe into
RISING RACISM: A Japanese group called on China to assure safety in the country, while the Chinese embassy in Tokyo urged action against a ‘surge in xenophobia’ A Japanese woman living in China was attacked and injured by a man in a subway station in Suzhou, China, Japanese media said, hours after two Chinese men were seriously injured in violence in Tokyo. The attacks on Thursday raised concern about xenophobic sentiment in China and Japan that have been blamed for assaults in both countries. It was the third attack involving Japanese living in China since last year. In the two previous cases in China, Chinese authorities have insisted they were isolated incidents. Japanese broadcaster NHK did not identify the woman injured in Suzhou by name, but, citing the Japanese
RESTRUCTURE: Myanmar’s military has ended emergency rule and announced plans for elections in December, but critics said the move aims to entrench junta control Myanmar’s military government announced on Thursday that it was ending the state of emergency declared after it seized power in 2021 and would restructure administrative bodies to prepare for the new election at the end of the year. However, the polls planned for an unspecified date in December face serious obstacles, including a civil war raging over most of the country and pledges by opponents of the military rule to derail the election because they believe it can be neither free nor fair. Under the restructuring, Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing is giving up two posts, but would stay at the
RSS