South African police yesterday warned they were prepared to arrest ex-president Jacob Zuma by a midnight deadline to enforce a jail sentence against him unless the country’s top court instructed otherwise.
In a historic ruling, the Constitutional Court last week handed Zuma a 15-month term for snubbing anti-graft investigators. Zuma mounted a last-ditch legal defence and refused to turn himself in by Sunday night as the court ordered.
Under the ruling, police were given three days to arrest him if he failed to surrender.
“If we don’t hear anything from the Constitutional Court – which we haven’t heard so far – we have until midnight tonight to execute the (arrest) order,” said police minister’s spokeswoman, Lirandzu Themba.
On Tuesday, police had appeared to give Zuma a breathing space, saying they would wait until the outcome of his legal battle – a process that culminates on July 12.
Zuma’s first application to halt execution of his imminent arrest was heard on Tuesday but the judgement was reserved until tomorrow.
Separately, he has pleaded with the Constitutional Court to reconsider and rescind its jail order.
That challenge will be heard next Monday.
The warning came after Police Minister Bheki Cele was quoted in local media as saying he would not take the blame if there was a failure to arrest Zuma.
“I’m not prepared to be charged for contempt of court,” online site News24 quoted him as saying.
Police officers were stationed in Empangeni, a town 115 kilometres from Zuma’s rural Nkandla home in southeastern Kwa-Zulu Natal province, according to local media.
Zuma’s foundation tweeted yesterday that it was “very concerned about unfolding developments and (was) monitoring the situation very closely.”