Durban – Former president Jacob Zuma has filed his responding papers to President Cyril Ramaphosa who wants to set aside the pending private prosecution summons served on him last month.
Zuma says Ramaphosa is seeking special treatment as a criminally charged and accused person.
Furthermore, Zuma who initially missed the deadline to file his responding papers, says Ramaphosa’s application should be dismissed as it has failed to meet the requirements of an interim interdict.
Zuma dragged Ramaphosa to court late last month, accusing him of not acting when asked to do so after Advocate Billy Downer of the NPA (National Prosecuting Authority) allegedly leaked his medical records to News24 journalist, Karyn Maughan.
For the above-mentioned alleged offence, Downer and Maughan are already being privately prosecuted by Zuma in the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
“I have read the (defective) founding affidavit of Cyril Matamela Ramaphosa in this matter.
“As first respondent, I have the right and duty to dispose to this affidavit and to oppose the applicant’s extremely abusive, frivolous and vexatious application as already indicated in my notice to do so.
“There is to date no indication that the DPP, the NPA and the Registrar will seek any involvement in Part A,” Zuma opened his 118 pages long affidavit.
He then said he would demonstrate that Ramaphosa’s application was neither urgent, nor deserving of the attention of the Johannesburg High Court.
“It represents an extreme case of the egregious abuse of this court’s process and it is designed to shield the applicant (Ramaphosa) from accountability for his alleged criminal conduct, which includes a failure to act when he had a legal duty to do so.
“It is by now trite, (that) crimes are committed, either by commission or omission.
“The real essence of the application is to seek unprecedented, special and preferential treatment of the applicant as a criminally charged and accused person.
“This and other preliminary legal objections raised below require that the application not to even be entertained but dismissed out of hand or struck off the roll with punitive costs,” Zuma argued in his affidavit.
He then goes on to say Ramaphosa, in his application, has failed to demonstrate why the high court should grant him the interdict he is praying for. “Regarding the merits, the applicant has dismally failed to meet the legal requirements for an interim interdict.
“‘In particular, the separation of powers and other harm which will be occasioned to the rule of law and confidence in our judiciary which would result if the relief sought, is granted in spite of so many glaring and fatal deficiencies in the application, would be immeasurable,” Zuma said.
Zuma then said he was pleased that Ramaphosa has abandoned his initially dismissive stance that he could choose to ignore the summons.
“On the positive side I must state upfront that I am pleased that the applicant (Ramaphosa) has seemingly abandoned his initial dismissive and contemptuous attitude towards the serious matter of his ongoing criminal prosecution for an extremely serious offence carrying a heavy sentence.”
