South Africa’s highest court, the Constitutional Court, has declared the release of former President Jacob Zuma on parole in September 2021 as unlawful.
Mr. Zuma had been convicted of contempt in June 2021 for refusing to cooperate with an anti-corruption inquiry during his presidency, resulting in a 15-month prison term.
Despite this conviction, the former head of the prison service authorized his release on medical parole after just two months. In December 2021, a high court overturned this decision, ordering Mr. Zuma to return to jail.
However, he appealed the ruling and remained free until November 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned the previous judgment, mandating that he complete the remainder of his sentence behind bars.
Notably, the court did not determine whether the time spent on medical parole should be factored into the calculation of Mr. Zuma’s prison term.
The Department of Correctional Services subsequently sought to challenge the decision by appealing to the Constitutional Court, but their application was denied on Thursday.
“On any conceivable basis, the commissioner’s decision was unlawful and unconstitutional. The high court was correct to set it aside,” the constitutional court reportedly ruled.
The Department of Correctional Services is currently reviewing the Constitutional Court’s judgment and intends to provide a comment after consulting with legal advisors.
