South Africa's Chief Prosecutor to Appeal Ruling on Zuma Corruption Charges

— -- South Africa’s chief prosecutor said today he will appeal a court ruling ordering his office to reconsider reinstating 783 corruption charges against President Jacob Zuma.

“I have decided to apply leave to appeal against the judgment of the full bench of the Pretoria High ourt,” National Prosecuting Authority head Shaun Abrahams said in a televised press conference in Pretoria.

The announcement comes three weeks after the Pretoria High Court ordered the National Prosecuting Authority to review its 2009 decision to drop the corruption charges against Zuma, which are linked to a 1999 government arms deal worth billions of dollars.

Judge Aubrey Ledwaba said the chief state prosecutor at the time, Mukotedi Mpshe, acted irrationally after listening to phone-tap evidence presented by Zuma’s legal team that suggested the timing of the charges may have been part of a political conspiracy against the president, according to Reuters. Mpshe apparently failed to divulge his decision on dropping the charges to prosecuting authorities until he announced it to the entire nation at a press conference, Reuters reported.

The corruption charges were dropped just weeks before the 2009 presidential elections, allowing Zuma to run and ultimately win.

Zuma has always denied the allegations against him.

Abrahams insisted today that no one influenced his decision to appeal the court ruling and acknowledged that the move won’t please all parties.

“I will carry out my duties and obligations in cases irrespective of who the suspect is or who the accused is without fear, favor or prejudice. I will do so what I believe is proper and correct in fulfilling my institutional obligations and law,” he said at the press conference today. “It is not in my job to please anybody or to make popular decisions but only to act in terms of principles and policies in accordance with my constitutional and statutory duties.”

The decision is good news for Zuma, who is facing intensifying calls for his resignation from the opposition and even from within his ruling African National Congress after a scathing verdict from South Africa’s Constitutional Court. The court ruled on March 31 that Zuma violated the country's constitution when he failed to repay millions in taxpayer money that was used for upgrades to his personal residence near the town of Nkandla.

Zuma, 74, survived an impeachment vote in the legislature last month. But veteran African National Congress members have urged the embattled leader to step down, saying the scandal has damaged the party’s image and has fractured the trust of its supporters.

“Our president, comrade Jacob Zuma, should reflect deeply and do the right thing to resolve the unprecedented crisis that the ANC currently faces,” the provincial executive committee of the African National Congress chapter in Gauteng said in an online statement on April 12.