Back in South Africa, Jacob Zuma welcomed as hero by his supporters

Text by: RFI Follow

After a medical stay in Cuba, former president Jacob Zuma is back in South Africa. He was able to count on a welcoming committee this Saturday morning at the airport, with hundreds of faithful who will continue at any cost to support him, whatever the allegations against him.

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With our correspondent in Johannesburg , Claire Bargelès

Activists and political leaders sing at the arrival of their hero. Everywhere are displayed the colors green and gold of the ANC, maintaining a little more confusion on the position of the party.

For Angel, there is no doubt that the former president is a victim of persecution. " He's back from Cuba, and thank you to this country for trying to treat it !" This is why I wear this cap, with a Cuban flag, and not South African. Because South Africa no longer understands anything. He drove us, he was our commander, so I will always respect him! "

In the crowd, Zephy shouts with the others the slogan "Do not touch Zuma". “ We cannot turn against him now, while we have supported him from the start, since 1994. Why should we turn our back on him? It is not the person I support, but the principles it represents, we must change the whole way the economy is controlled in South Africa. "

Dark glasses on his nose, the former president said he was weakened, but far from being frightened by the idea of ​​going to prison. His trial in a bribe case with the French company Thalès, which dates back almost 20 years, was due to start at the beginning of the month, when the former president suddenly left the country for health problems. Arguments which did not convince the judge who issued a deferred arrest warrant against him, if he did not appear before the beginning of May.

For analyst Ralph Mathegka, the politicization of the affair is now his main weapon: " He does not want to be confronted with substantive discussions about whether he was corrupt or not. So he plays on another field, in the political arena, because he knows that political divisions within the ANC can be exploited. And those who can be accused of corruption within the ANC will more readily join him . "

Jacob Zuma is expected by the High Court of Pietermaritzburg for a hearing on May 6.

► Read also - South Africa: “deferred” arrest warrant against former president Jacob Zuma

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