ANC NWC REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR ANC PRESIDENT

The ANC National Working Committee, meeting in Johannesburg yesterday (28 July 2008), reaffirmed the organisation's support for ANC President Jacob Zuma ahead of his appearance in the Pietermaritzburg High Court next week.

Consistent with earlier decisions of the ANC National Executive Committee (NEC), leaders and members of the ANC will gather in Pietermaritzburg next Monday to demonstrate their support for the ANC President.

They will communicate the following principal messages:

• The ANC stands firmly behind the right of its President, as a citizen of South Africa, to equal treatment before the law and to be presumed innocent until found otherwise.
• The ANC will consistently strive to uphold and defend the integrity and credibility of the judiciary and other institutions of state.
• Throughout the investigation and prosecution of this case the ANC President has had his rights repeatedly violated by institutions of state, specifically the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
• The fact that scope of the charges brought against Zuma has been broadened since the previous indictment, to include charges on tax matters for example, gives weight to the view that the ANC President is being persecuted rather than merely prosecuted.
• He has been subjected to a vicious and unrelenting trial by media, having been tried and found guilty long before his case has even come to court.
• The manner in which this case has been handled by the authorities over the last few years has reinforced the perception that this is a political trial and has fuelled doubts about his chances of receiving a fair hearing.

As the ANC has repeatedly said, we seek no special treatment for our President. We simply seek that he be treated fairly and justly.

Statement issued by the ANC National Working Committee July 29 2008