FMF statement on the Zuma saga
Leon Louw Founder President
At midnight last night our country crossed a Rule of Law Rubicon to be celebrated by all decent people. Former President Zuma is in prison. That he is in prison should not be celebrated. A first contempt conviction does not, in my view, justify imprisonment. What must be celebrated is much bigger even than a former President; it is the Rule of Law.
We witnessed a glorious moment regardless of whether he will be in for one, a few, or many nights. During the media feeding frenzy surrounding hearings, gatherings and rhetoric, few paused to contemplate the greater significance. What happened supersedes profound implications for Zuma, the ANC and politics generally.
A former and popular head of state, with many luminaries backing him, was tried and found guilty by the “highest court in the land”, whether rightly or wrongly. What matters most is that he was afforded due process.
This was not so much a victory for the prosecution or defeat for the defence, as a triumph for the Constitution and the Rule of Law.
Ends