Raymond Zondo - The African Mirror

Apr

2021

Choose your punishment, Zuma told

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER SOUTH Africa’s Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has provided former South African president Jacob Zuma an opportunity to influence the sanction the Constitutional Court should impose on him, should he be found guilty of contempt of court. The Constitutional Court, the highest court in SA, is due to hand down its verdict in a case in which it has been asked by the chair of the judicial commission into state capture to find Zuma guilty of contempt and sent him to jail for two years. Zuma has until April 14 to file the affidavit. Deputy Chief Justice Raymond…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

Date set for Zuma’s Constitutional Court hearing

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER SOUTH Africa’s highest court - the Constitutional Court - will hear the case against the country’s former president Jacob Zuma on March 25. Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, who chairs the judicial commission into state capture, theft and corruption, approached the Constitutional Court on an urgent basis, to convict Zuma of contempt and impose a two year prison sentence on him. The Constitutional Court yesterday issued directions in terms of which Zuma has until March 8 to file a response to the case made by the Zondo Commission. The commission approached the court after Zuma ignored its…

Feb

2021

By The African Mirror

Zuma’s defiance is a grave moment for South Africa. But it’s not a constitutional crisis

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE attempt by former South African president Jacob Zuma to destabilise the country’s constitutional order, and defy the rule of law, does not constitute a constitutional crisis as some have claimed. RICHARD CALLAND, Associate Professor in Public Law, University of Cape Town It is, nonetheless, a grave moment for modern South Africa and its fledgling democracy. A former president who, as the Constitutional Court has pointed out, has a particular responsibility to respect the constitution even out of office, has chosen to defy an order from the highest court. This, while attacking the legitimacy of the judiciary and the Commission…

Feb

2021

By The African Mirror

Zuma faces new criminal charges

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER THE judicial commission into state capture is going toe-to-toe with former president Jacob Zuma, who has declared that he will defy the summons as well as a ruling by the Constitutional Court to appear and testify. The commission, chaired by Deputy President Raymond Zondo, announced yesterday that it will lay criminal charges against Zuma, who on Monday declared that he does not fear being arrested. Zuma made it clear, in a lengthy statement, that he would defy the order by the Constitutional Court, the highest court in South Africa, which ruled that he must appear, as summoned,…

Jan

2021

By The African Mirror

Zuma forced to appear before commission

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER THE highest court in South Africa has ruled that former president Jacob Zuma should appear, give evidence and answer questions at the Zondo Commission into state capture, fraud and corruption. The Constitutional Court not only ordered that Zuma must obey all summonses issued by the Zondo Commission, chaired by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, but also slapped Zuma with the cost of the application. In a unanimous decision, the court said while Zuma does not have the right not to answer questions, he would be entitled to show to the commission why answering questions may incriminate him.…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s ex-leader Zuma ordered to reappear at graft inquiry

NEWS

SOUTH Africa's former President Jacob Zuma has been ordered to reappear at an inquiry into state corruption during his term after he abruptly left the proceedings last month, according to a summons issued by the head of the investigation. Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo is also asking the Constitutional Court, the highest legal authority in the land, to compel Zuma to attend and "account for his exercise of public power". In his second appearance at the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture two weeks ago, Zuma had his application for the judge to recuse himself dismissed. Zuma then left proceedings…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

Dudu Myeni to face criminal charges for unmasking protected witness

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER DUDU Myeni, businesswoman and chair of the Jacob Zuma Foundation is to be charged for disclosing the identity of a witness who had been granted anonymity by the judicial commission into state capture. Deputy Judge President Raymond Zondo, the commission’s chair, announced today that he had instructed his legal team to lay a criminal complaint against Myeni, the former chairperson of South African Airways. The police will be asked to investigate a possible violation, by Myeni, of the commission’s act and regulations.s During her appearance before the commission, revealed the identity of Mr X and was asked…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

ANC and mayor of Johannesburg implicated in damning kickback scandal

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER SOUTH Africa’s governing party, the ANC, faces damning allegations that it is funded through kickbacks from irregular state tenders. Evidence led at the judicial commission into state capture, chaired by the country’s Deputy President Raymond Zondo, contains traces of up to R16-million in “donations” to the ANC’s Johannesburg region from EOH, a company that got tenders, worth hundreds of millions, from the ANC-run Johannesburg City Council. Steven Powell, managing director of ENSAfrica, which conducted investigations of EOH transactions, presented damaging documented evidence which traced transactions of millions that were paid to the ANC and a company owned…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

Zondo Commission to lay criminal charges against Zuma and summons him to appear again

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER THE Zondo Commission is to lay criminal charges against former president Jacob Zuma after he defiantly left the hearing last week without the permission of the chairperson. Commission chairperson Deputy President Raymond Zondo announced today that charges would be laid by the commission secretariat and all the information and evidence would also be made available to the police and the National Prosecutions Authority. “It is quite important for the proper functioning of this commission that Mr Zuma’s conduct be dealt with in a manner in which our law provides it should be dealt with. This commission is…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

South African judge has refused to step down from corruption probe: this was the right call

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

DEPUTY Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, the head of the inquiry into allegations that the South African state was “captured” and repurposed to benefit private interests during former president Jacob Zuma’s tenure (May 2009 to February 2018), has dismissed Zuma’s application for his recusal. The former president, who stands accused of having facilitated grand corruption, had accused the judge of bias. Politics editor Thabo Leshilo asked Cathleen Powell for her insights. CATHLEEN POWELL, Associate Professor in Public Law, University of Cape Town Is the decision correct or not and why? The decision is correct, and it is the only principled decision…