By: Natasha Archary
Former President Jacob Zuma has been given the green light to pursue the private prosecution of State prosecutor Billy Downer.
On Tuesday, 07 June, Zuma was issued with a nolle prosequi certificate by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in KwaZulu-Natal.
This after the DPP refused to prosecute Downer on the basis that there is insufficient evidence to do so.
Jacob Zuma had been pushing to have Downer recused from his corruption trial due to his past conduct. Arguing that Billy Downer would compromise his case, Zuma had been advocating for action against the State’s senior advocate.
“The NPA agrees with the DPP that the charges laid against Downer are baseless and cannot be sustained, hence her decision not to prosecute him. Downer has the NPA’s full support and will continue to lead the prosecution team against Zuma and French arms company, Thales.”
NPA spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga
Billy Downer has been accused by Zuma and his legal team of legally and politically compromising the corruption case against the former president.
Zuma is facing charges of corruption, racketeering and money laundering in the multi-billion Rand, 1999 arms deal.
Both the NPA and the DPP say Zuma has the right to pursue a private prosecution against Downer and stress that due process be followed.
Zuma’s corruption trial is set to resume on 15 August at the High Court in Pietermaritzburg.
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