South African court agrees to hear Jacob Zuma's application

Former South African President Jacob Zuma

Former South African President Jacob Zuma appears before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, that is probing wide-ranging allegations of corruption in government and State-owned companies, in Johannesburg, on July 19, 2019. 

Photo credit: Mike Hutchings | AFP

South Africa's Constitutional Court has spared former President Jacob Zuma's jail for now by accepting his urgent application, scheduling hearing on July 12.

"The hearing will take place on a virtual platform. Directions would be issued in due course," said Constitutional Court acting registrar Dunisani Mathiba.

Constitutional Court of South Africa on Tuesday sentenced Zuma to 15 months in jail for being in contempt of court. He was given five days to report at the police stations to be taken to prison to start serving his sentence.

He made an urgent application to the Constitutional Court to rescind its order.

The sentence came after Zuma refused to comply with the order of the court which ordered him to appear and testify at the state capture commission.