The Jacob Zuma Foundation says it is awaiting a briefing from the former president’s legal team following a high court ruling ordering him to repay the R28.9 million that the government spent on his legal fees with interest.
Zuma suffered yet another blow at the Gauteng High Court on Wednesday after it ruled that he was personally liable for the legal expenses in his long-running arms deal corruption case.
Court battle
The Presidency and the State Attorney’s office sought an order to recover the funds, arguing that Zuma failed to respond to or pay the amount demanded in a letter regarding the repayment.
However, Zuma argued that the state was liable for Zuma’s legal costs related to his long-running corruption and fraud case stemming from the 1999 arms deal and other cases instituted against him in his personal capacity.
The court battle follows a 2021 Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruling that Zuma was not entitled to taxpayer-funded legal support and must reimburse the State.
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Zuma response
Jacob Zuma Foundation spokesperson Mzwanele Manyi said Zuma’s lawyers are studying the judgment.
“The JG Zuma Foundation will await briefing by the lawyers before making any comments on the judgment.”
‘Zuma benefited’
The judgment follows years of litigation with both the DA and the EFF demanding accountability.
DA spokesperson Willie Aucamp said that since 2018, Zuma has evaded repaying millions in legal fees that the State should not have paid on his behalf.
“Mr Zuma has benefited from this R28.9 million in taxpayer money over the past 7 years. In every way possible, the DA continues to fight for the rule of law, protection of taxpayer money, and the rooting out of state capture.
“We look forward to seeing Mr Zuma repay what he owes South Africa, starting with this first amount of R28.9-million plus interest thereon. A report must be furnished to the Court on the progress of the recovery, so that South Africans are kept abreast thereof,” Aucamp said.
Judgment
In the judgment delivered on Wednesday, Judge Anthony Millar explained that the exact amount owed by Zuma was only determined after the state calculated the total disbursements for his legal costs under the high court’s 2018 order and formally demanded payment.
The judge said the demand was made in two parts. The first part, R18.2 million, was demanded on 1 October 2021.
The second part, R10.7 million, was added later, bringing the total to R28.9 million when the current process was served on 24 January 2024.
Legal fees
He explained that because the two amounts were demanded at different times, interest for late payment (mora interest) began running on each amount from its respective demand date.
“Put simply, mora interest runs on the amount of R18 261 347.72 from 22 October 2021 until 24 January 2024, and from 25 January 2024, mora interest runs on the total amount of R28 960 774.34,” the judgment reads.
The DA had also requested that repayment be made within 60 days against Zuma’s property, including his entire presidential pension.
Additional reporting by Molefe Seeletsa
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