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A preliminary hearing in South Africa has set the May 17 trial for corruption against former President Jacob Zuma. The lawsuit documents alleged bribery and corruption that Zuma committed while he was vice president from 1999 and then president from 2009 to 2018.
Zuma was not in court for the hearing, which was broadcast on local television, but he denied all charges in a previous hearing.
The alleged bribes and corruption are linked to his tenure as vice president and a $ 2 billion arms deal with Thales, a French defense company.
He is accused of having taken € 28,000 per year from Thales, from 1999, to pay for the company’s protection against an investigation into their agreement to supply military equipment to South Africa.
Thales, known as Thompson-CSF in 1999, said it had no records or information regarding the payment of bribes by its employees.
Zuma faces 16 counts, including racketeering, fraud, corruption and money laundering.
The High Court has called for all wrongdoers to be present in court on May 17, noting that only if Thales representatives can travel to South Africa to attend the trial due to Covid restrictions -19.
The trial is scheduled to last from May to June.
Notably, another South African corruption case in which Zuma is involved calls for his two-year jail term because he defied a court order and refused to appear, as well as to testify.
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