The Constitutional Court has refused leave to appeal by former president Jacob Zuma in his bid to have the prosecutor in his corruption trial Billy Downer removed.
Zuma had attempted to oust Downer from the trial in a special plea before the high court in Pietermaritzburg last year. In that special plea, Zuma said Downer had no title to prosecute because he was biased.
That application was dismissed by judge Piet Koen in October last year.
Following the dismissal of the special plea, Zuma unsuccessfully applied for leave to appeal before the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA). A reconsideration of that decision by then SCA President Mandisa Maya was also unsuccessful.
Zuma then applied for leave to appeal before the Constitutional Court.
In the order dated December 8, the court said it has considered the application for leave to appeal. “It has concluded that the application should be dismissed as it bears no reasonable prospects of success,” the order read.
The corruption case of Zuma and Thales South Africa is set to resume on January 30 next year. Koen indicated during the sitting of the case in October that he is considering recusing himself.
Zuma and Thales are facing charges of racketeering, corruption, money laundering and fraud relating to the arms deal.
Zuma is accused of receiving about R4m via his former financial adviser Schabir Shaik to assist Thales to secure defence contracts. Shaik was convicted in 2005 but was released on medical parole in 2009.
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