ZUMA BEHIND BARS

Experts weigh in on what the former president’s imprisonment means for the ANC and South Africa

- LESEGO SEOKWANG & NASIFA SULAIMAN

HE TRIED pretty much every trick in the book but in the end he had to do what every other citizen in this country must do: obey the rule of law.

Former president Jacob Zuma’s delay tactics – of which there were plenty – couldn’t keep him out of jail and he handed himself over at practically the last minute.

His last-ditch attempt was to have the Constitutional Court change its decision to send him to prison for 15 months after finding him guilty of contempt of court.

After weeks of high drama, we speak to experts about what Zuma can expect in prison and what it means for his future, for the ANC and for South Africa.

WHERE HE’S JAILED

Zuma spent 10 years on Robben Island as a political prisoner between 1963 and 1973 and his new prison will be worlds away from the appalling conditions and back-breaking labour he was subjected to in the apartheid-era prison.

The medium-security Estcourt Correctional Centre in Estcourt, KwaZulu-Natal, was built in 1966. It underwent a 17-yearlong refurbishment, aimed at reducing overcrowding, that was completed in 2019.

Its cells can house 10 inmates each. Zuma will be quarantined in isolation in the hospital wing for his first 14 days in line with Covid-19 safety protocols, says Ronald Lamola, minister of justice and correctional services.

Zuma is likely to get first-class treatment inside the prison – despite Lamola’s assurances that the former president will be treated like any other inmate.