Will Former President Jacob Zuma face jail time?

Former President Jacob Zuma has yet again found himself in under the spotlight, as he made a brief appearance in the Durban High Court.

He faces prosecution for 16 charges pertaining to his role in the multibillion-rand arms deal. The notorious arms deal, formerly known as the Strategic Defense Package, was a military acquisition project which was finalised in 1999 by the South African Government.

During the acquisition, allegations of large-scale bribery was made. Such are the allegations, it is claimed that millions of rands of public money was lost due to bribery and irregularities.

With Zuma now facing charges for his role in the deal, he faces possible jail time. His court case was expected to start at 9.30am on April 6. Arriving at the high court, amidst the cheers of supporters, Zuma faced a certain degree of uncertainty.

Zuma will be prosecuted for 12 counts of fraud, two counts of corruption, one count of racketeering and one count of money laundering.

Leading the state’s prosecution team will be Advocate Billy Downer. The same advocate who led the prosecution against Zuma’s friend, Shabir Shaik. Zuma’s defence will be Pietermaritzburg advocate, Hoosen Gani.

However, while the prosecution team had set their sights on Zuma, his court case has been postponed until June 8. But, the Durban High Court has trail dates available from November 12 this year. This means the trial could only start then. Zuma’s defence has only agreed to a postponement and has not agreed to set a trial date.

With the impending court case, supporters are determined to see him walk free, claiming the court case was nothing more than a witch hunt.

What are your thoughts? Do you believe that Jacob Zuma should be taken to book? Or do you feel this is indeed a witch hunt?