President Jacob Zuma on Thursday welcomed the release of the so-called "spy tapes".
"The president is happy with the process thus far," Zuma's spokesman Mac Maharaj said in a statement shortly after a copy was given to the Democratic Alliance. The originals would be kept at the High Court in Pretoria.
The Supreme Court of Appeal ordered the National Prosecuting Authority last week to release the tapes within five days. Zuma had opposed the move.
It was ordered that the documents be delivered to retired KwaZulu-Natal high court judge Noel Hurt, who would study the documents, mark those containing Zuma's confidential written or oral representations to the NPA, and leave those out of the bundle to the DA.
Maharaj said Hurt would on Thursday be given separate internal documentation, to consider whether this revealed Zuma's confidential representations to the NPA or not.
"All of this emanated from the agreement which the parties reached and which was presented to the SCA for incorporation into the order of the court," he said.
"This process is designed to determine what constitutes the record upon which the NPA decision was based."
The DA applied for access to the tapes and, in spite of winning previous court cases, could not obtain them.
DA leader Helen Zille told ENCA on Thursday that will now move forward to seek answers as to why phones of people from such high levels were tapped and who ordered for this to be done. She also wants answers to how the tapes ended up with President Zuma’s lawyers.
Zille believes the tapes contain crucial and possibly incriminating information because President Zuma went to great lengths to oppose the release.
"If there was nothing to hide, we should have had these tapes at the beginning."
Zuma's legal team had argued in the last application that the opposition would use it against him for political gain.
Conversations on the recordings were cited as a reason to drop fraud and corruption charges against Zuma, shortly before he was sworn in as president in 2009.
At the time, acting NPA boss Mokotedi Mpshe said there it revealed that there was a political conspiracy against Zuma and so the case could not continue.
The tapes, containing recordings of phone conversations, allegedly reveal collusion between the former heads of the Directorate of Special Operations, the now defunct Scorpions, Leonard McCarthy, and the NPA's former head Bulelani Ngcuka, to manipulate the prosecutorial process, before the ANC's Polokwane conference in 2007. Zuma was elected ANC president at the conference.
Sowetan LIVE tried to contact Mac Maharaj, the spokesperson of the Presidency, to explain further as to why the 'change of heart', but he is unavailable for further comment until 7am on Friday.
Zuma welcomes spy tapes release
President Jacob Zuma on Thursday welcomed the release of the so-called "spy tapes".
"The president is happy with the process thus far," Zuma's spokesman Mac Maharaj said in a statement shortly after a copy was given to the Democratic Alliance. The originals would be kept at the High Court in Pretoria.
The Supreme Court of Appeal ordered the National Prosecuting Authority last week to release the tapes within five days. Zuma had opposed the move.
It was ordered that the documents be delivered to retired KwaZulu-Natal high court judge Noel Hurt, who would study the documents, mark those containing Zuma's confidential written or oral representations to the NPA, and leave those out of the bundle to the DA.
Maharaj said Hurt would on Thursday be given separate internal documentation, to consider whether this revealed Zuma's confidential representations to the NPA or not.
"All of this emanated from the agreement which the parties reached and which was presented to the SCA for incorporation into the order of the court," he said.
"This process is designed to determine what constitutes the record upon which the NPA decision was based."
The DA applied for access to the tapes and, in spite of winning previous court cases, could not obtain them.
DA leader Helen Zille told ENCA on Thursday that will now move forward to seek answers as to why phones of people from such high levels were tapped and who ordered for this to be done. She also wants answers to how the tapes ended up with President Zuma’s lawyers.
Zille believes the tapes contain crucial and possibly incriminating information because President Zuma went to great lengths to oppose the release.
"If there was nothing to hide, we should have had these tapes at the beginning."
Zuma's legal team had argued in the last application that the opposition would use it against him for political gain.
Conversations on the recordings were cited as a reason to drop fraud and corruption charges against Zuma, shortly before he was sworn in as president in 2009.
At the time, acting NPA boss Mokotedi Mpshe said there it revealed that there was a political conspiracy against Zuma and so the case could not continue.
The tapes, containing recordings of phone conversations, allegedly reveal collusion between the former heads of the Directorate of Special Operations, the now defunct Scorpions, Leonard McCarthy, and the NPA's former head Bulelani Ngcuka, to manipulate the prosecutorial process, before the ANC's Polokwane conference in 2007. Zuma was elected ANC president at the conference.
Sowetan LIVE tried to contact Mac Maharaj, the spokesperson of the Presidency, to explain further as to why the 'change of heart', but he is unavailable for further comment until 7am on Friday.
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