Johannesburg - Civil rights organisation AfriForum will submit an urgent application to the Constitutional Court today to put aside former president Jacob Zuma’s regulations, published last week, for the commission of inquiry into State Capture.
Last Friday, just a few days before his resignation, Zuma published the regulations with the mandate to which the commission of inquiry must comply. This commission will be headed by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo and is the result of former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela's State of Capture report.
Regulation 8(2) of these regulations determines that no evidence which serves before the commission or any facts that come to light as a result of this evidence may be used in criminal proceedings.
AfriForum believes this is Zuma's last attempt to escape criminal prosecution.
"The implication of this regulation is that Zuma has in effect pulled the commission’s teeth, as any revelation before the commission that comes down to corruption, bribery, organised crime or any other crime related to the controversial and now well-known state capture, may not be used to prove the guilt of any accused who is subsequently prosecuted," Afriforum said in a statement.
"As this case relates to a constitutional failure of the President himself, AfriForum is of the opinion that the case falls within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court.
"AfriForum therefore brought an application for direct access to this Court to bring this urgent application." said the organisation's legal representative, Willie Spies. "It is important that this application be brought to ensure that the teeth of the commission of enquiry led by Justice Zondo are not be pulled in advance," he said.