Publication: Sunday Tribune
Issued:
Date: 2005-11-13
Reporter: Jeremy Gordin
| Publication |
Sunday Tribune
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| Date |
2005-11-13
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Reporter
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Jeremy Gordin
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Web link
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Former
deputy president Jacob Zuma was dealt a double blow this week - his star lawyer
has quit his team and a dirty tricks campaign has been launched against
him.
The Sunday Tribune has learnt that Kessie Naidu, SC, spearhead of
Zuma's defence team, has had to quit because of a
conflict of interest.
And a cruel
disinformation campaign has been launched against Zuma: a number of newspapers
have been given "information" that a rape charge has been
laid against him.
Michael Hulley, Zuma's attorney, refuted this.
He confirmed yesterday he had been informed by a newspaper that it had been told
Zuma had allegedly raped someone about 10 days ago, and that a charge had been
laid. He had also been told the same "information" by other newspapers.
"I contacted at least two police stations in or around the Johannesburg
suburb where the incident was alleged to have taken place, as well as the sex
crimes unit of SAPS. But no one knew anything; there was no docket, and no
victim," said Hulley.
"Needless to say, my client knew nothing about the
matter, either. You can draw your own conclusions from all that."
"We
know all about the rumour that is being peddled," said Ranjeni Munusamy, an
ex-journalist who is assisting the Zuma camp in Durban. "It's hurtful, it's
rubbish.
"There's no docket, no victim. So what can one say about
it?"
Yesterday morning, sitting in the Durban Regional Court, where he
was formally handed the National Prosecuting Authority's provisional indictment
against him and had his case referred to the Durban High Court, Zuma looked unhappier than he has for a long time.
His
disconsolate expression may have been due to the news about Naidu, which Zuma
heard this week. Nor can Zuma have been happy about the disinformation
campaign.
Now, Naidu will represent only Thint
Holding and Thint, subsidiaries of the French arms and electronics giant
Thales, and also Zuma's two co-accused in the former deputy president's July 31
corruption trial.
Blessing
Ajay Sooklal, Thint's
attorney, told Zuma this week that Naidu had to "leave" and to represent Thint,
because he had been retained by Thales in April last year to act for the arms
company in connection with the charges laid against it in Schabir Shaik's
corruption and fraud trial.
Following this, Thales retained Naidu on "a
watching brief" for the Shaik trial itself. Naidu and Thales then agreed that
Naidu could lead the Zuma defence team, provided the French were not re-charged
in connection with the same issues.
But, now that Thint has been charged,
alongside Zuma, with two charges of corruption arising from the Shaik trial and
the arms deal, Sooklal was told in Paris this week by Thales's top executives
that Naidu must henceforth act for Thint in all pre-trial and trial matters.
Naidu would not comment yesterday, since he is precluded from talking
about his relationships with clients. But it is reliably understood from Sooklal
that Zuma "gave Naidu his full blessing" and said he was glad that Naidu was
still directly involved in the case.
Zuma had said he was aware that,
since there was no conflict between the co-accused and since the co-accused had
been charged with being in a joint conspiracy, Naidu's defence on behalf of the
two Thint companies would still be to Zuma's benefit.
Senior counsels
Kemp J Kemp and Jerome Brauns have been mentioned as possible successors to
Naidu. During Zuma's court appearance of less than two minutes yesterday, the
matter was handled by Brauns.
Naidu shot to national prominence as
evidence leader during the 2003 Hefer commission of inquiry into whether
Bulelani Ngcuka, former chief of the National Prosecution Authority, had been a
spy for the apartheid regime. The silver-haired Naidu was dubbed "the silver
fox" because of his wily and often aggressive style of
cross-examination. He is understood to have been the prime mover behind the Zuma camp's strategy of launching a proactive and aggressive defence
campaign whenever it can. Naidu is also known to be politically savvy and well-connected, as well as street
smart.
Deal
In April 2004, before the start of
the Shaik trial, Naidu was involved in having charges dropped from the Shaik
charge sheet against the Thint companies. With French lawyers and local ones,
including Sooklal, he played a role in cutting a deal with Ngcuka and Penuell
Maduna, then minister of justice, in arranging immunity from charges for Thint,
in exchange for an affidavit by former Thint director, Alain
Thetard.
Thetard was the author of a contentious fax, allegedly
containing the details of a bribe for Zuma, which was eventually accepted as
evidence in the Shaik trial.
Among those attending yesterday's court
proceedings were Kgalema Motlanthe, ANC Secretary-General, Blade Nzimande,
General-Secretary of the South African Communist Party, S'bu Ndebele, Premier of
KwaZulu Natal, Ngoako Ramathlodi, an adviser to President Mbeki and Baleka
Mbete, the parliamentary Speaker.
Zuma's prison
musings...
Zuma thanked his family and friends at a lunch yesterday
for their support, saying he was satisfied that when he had
to go to prison, there would be immense support:
"When I was
arrested for the first time (for political reasons), I spent 10 years on Robben
Island without any visit. My family was so poor I had to prevent my mother from
spending her last penny to visit me. But now I know there will be a queue, from Monday to Monday," he said, amid
protests from guests that he was not going to prison. With acknowledgements to Jeremy
Gordin and the Sunday Tribune.