Fri 11 October 2019:
Former South African president Jacob Zuma will face trial on corruption charges after a court on Friday dismissed his application for a permanent stay of prosecution.
Zuma, who is accused of taking bribes from French defence company Thales in the 1990s, sought to have the case permanently dropped in March.
It is uncertain how long the trial will last and when South Africans will have answers for a case that has been going on for almost 15 years.
Zuma’s lawyers said the case is politically motivated and the years of delay will result in an unfair trial.
The judge agreed with the prosecution that parts of Zuma’s arguments to have the case thrown out were “scandalous and or vexatious”.
Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller, reporting from Pietermaritzburg, said the court ruling was handed down in less than two minutes.
“However, the former president has the option to approach the Supreme Court to appeal this judgement and perhaps further delay his day in court,” she said.
“Zuma has said for a long time that he wants to have the opportunity appear in court, but at the same he also tried to delay his appearance.”
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