South Africa's top court said it would rule on Tuesday whether ex-president Jacob Zuma -- who snubbed an order by the Constitutional Court in January to testify before investigators, is guilty of contempt of court for refusing to appear before a graft panel.
South Africa: Will Constitutional Court snub land Jacob Zuma in jail?
Jacob Zuma could do two years in jail if found guilty of being in contempt of court.
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Copyright © africanews
PHILL MAGAKOE/AFP
The commission went to court seeking to have the 79-year-old jailed for two years for defying the order.
The Court also announced on Monday that Judgement in the case which was heard in March, "will be delivered tomorrow."
The former South African president who was forced to step down in 2018 over corruption scandals, is accused of enabling the stealing of state funds during his almost nine-year stay in office.
It was Zuma himself, under pressure over the scandal, who set up the inquiry shortly before he was ousted by the ruling African National Congress (ANC) .
Jacob Zuma has testified only once, in July 2019, before staging a walkout days later -- accusing the commission's chair of bias, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo , of bias.
Other than a brief appearance in November where he left before questioning -- prompting an exasperated Zondo to ask the Constitutional Court to intervene, he has since ignored several invitations to show in court.
Zuma has cited medical reasons and preparations for another corruption trial for his repeated no-shows.
He has also refused to participate in contempt of court proceedings, and instead wrote a scathing letter to Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng describing an "atmosphere of judicial hostility" and "humiliation."
Most of the transgressions investigated by the commission involve three brothers from a wealthy Indian business family, the Guptas, who won lucrative government contracts and were allegedly even able to choose cabinet ministers.