S Africa: Zuma could face jail after corruption inquiry snub

Former South African President Jacob Zuma did not comply with court order to appear before the panel probing corruption.

A South African inquiry into corruption during Jacob Zuma’s time as president will ask the Constitutional Court to impose a jail term on the former leader after he defied an order to appear before the inquiry on Monday. Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, who leads the inquiry, said there was “no valid or sound reason” for Zuma’s failure to appear before the inquiry, which is probing allegations of high-level fraud during his period in power from 2009 to 2018. The 79-year-old denies wrongdoing but has not cooperated with the commission of inquiry. He was removed from office by the governing African National Congress (ANC) in 2018, in a move orchestrated by allies of his successor Cyril Ramaphosa.