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| Opposition to fight Zuma decision | Opposition to fight Zuma decision |
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| South Africa's main opposition leader, Helen Zille, is mounting a legal challenge to the dropping of corruption charges against ANC leader Jacob Zuma. | |
| Ms Zille accused prosecutors of bowing to political pressure just two weeks before presidential elections, in which Mr Zuma will be the ANC's candidate. | Ms Zille accused prosecutors of bowing to political pressure just two weeks before presidential elections, in which Mr Zuma will be the ANC's candidate. |
| The National Prosecution Authority (NPA) threw out the case, saying there had been political interference. | The National Prosecution Authority (NPA) threw out the case, saying there had been political interference. |
| Durban High Court, meanwhile, formally dropped the charges against Mr Zuma. | |
| Busloads of Mr Zuma's supporters gathered outside the court on Tuesday morning for his brief appearance. | |
| We believe there's been terrible abuse here, none of the reasons given are justification for withdrawing the case Helen ZilleDemocratic Alliance leader class="" href="/1/hi/world/africa/7986757.stm"> Joy and fury as case collapses class="" href="/1/hi/world/africa/7981848.stm"> Victory for Zuma's hard-core fans | |
| They sang Umshini wami (Bring Me My Machine-Gun), a popular apartheid-era song associated with Mr Zuma. | |
| The African National Congress (ANC) leader is due hold a news conference at a hotel afterwards as he returns to the campaign trail. | |
| On Monday, the NPA said the timing of the decision to charge Mr Zuma in 2007 had been manipulated. | |
| Chief prosecutor Mokotedi Mpshe said wire-tapped phone conversations showed Leonard McCarthy - former head of the now-disbanded Scorpions investigative unit - had abused the legal system. | |
| Mr McCarthy is now head of the anti-corruption unit at the World Bank. | Mr McCarthy is now head of the anti-corruption unit at the World Bank. |
| Mr Zuma has always denied allegations of graft, racketeering and money-laundering over a multibillion dollar 1999 arms deal. | |
| Analysts and opposition politicians say the charges have been dropped on a technicality and so suspicion will continue to dog Mr Zuma as he has not cleared his name in court. | |
| Views from Polokwane on dropping Jacob Zuma's graft caseIn pictures | |
| Ms Zille said: "The next step is very clear for the Democratic Alliance: We will launch an application at the North Gauteng Supreme Court in order to ask for a judicial review of the NPA's decision to withdraw charges against Jacob Zuma. | |
| "We believe there's been terrible abuse here. We believe none of the reasons given are justification for withdrawing the case and we are going to stop that abuse." | "We believe there's been terrible abuse here. We believe none of the reasons given are justification for withdrawing the case and we are going to stop that abuse." |
| The BBC's Mpho Lakaje in Johannesburg says given Mr Zuma's legal victories in recent years it will take something special for Ms Zille to win against the ANC boss. | The BBC's Mpho Lakaje in Johannesburg says given Mr Zuma's legal victories in recent years it will take something special for Ms Zille to win against the ANC boss. |
| 'Biggest comeback' | |
| The new ANC breakaway party, the Congress of the People (Cope), is also seeking to harvest votes from Mr Zuma's legal problems. | |
| Cope urged South Africans "to vote against the abuse of power, the lowering of democratic standards, and the political bankruptcy of the ANC leadership". | |
| Mr Zuma, 66, was first charged in 2005, but never faced trial. | Mr Zuma, 66, was first charged in 2005, but never faced trial. |
| ZUMA TIMELINE June 2005: Sacked as deputy presidentOctober 2005: Charged with corruption December 2005: Charged with rapeApril 2006: Acquitted of rape chargesSeptember 2006: Corruption case collapses December 2007: Elected ANC president; then re-charged September 2008: Judge rules corruption case cannot proceedJanuary 2009:Prosecutors win appeal6 April 2009: Prosecutors drop case citing phone-tap evidence22 April 2009: Presidential election; Mr Zuma tipped to win Timeline: Zuma's legal problems S Africa's controversial arms deal BBC News Africa on Twitter | |
| The case was dropped the following year, but he was recharged 10 days after he defeated former South African President Thabo Mbeki in elections to be the ANC's leader in December 2007. | The case was dropped the following year, but he was recharged 10 days after he defeated former South African President Thabo Mbeki in elections to be the ANC's leader in December 2007. |
| Last year a judge ruled that there had been political meddling in the case, but the NPA successfully appealed. | Last year a judge ruled that there had been political meddling in the case, but the NPA successfully appealed. |
| The prosecutor said on Monday he had no evidence that charges had been manipulated at the behest of Mr Mbeki. | The prosecutor said on Monday he had no evidence that charges had been manipulated at the behest of Mr Mbeki. |
| Support for Mr Zuma was not even affected by rape charges in a separate case in 2006, which ended in his acquittal. | |
| In that trial, he outraged Aids activists by testifying that he had unprotected, consensual sex with the HIV-positive woman and then took a shower in the belief that it would protect him from the virus. | |
| Our correspondent says Mr Zuma's story has been dubbed the biggest comeback in the history of the African continent. | Our correspondent says Mr Zuma's story has been dubbed the biggest comeback in the history of the African continent. |
| Questions now remain on what will happen to those who conspired to frustrate his political ambitions, he adds. | Questions now remain on what will happen to those who conspired to frustrate his political ambitions, he adds. |
| For more, follow our South Africa coverage on Twitter | For more, follow our South Africa coverage on Twitter |