Former president Jacob Zuma could spend the next long weekend surrounded by family in the comfort of his Nkandla homestead in picturesque KwaZulu-Natal, a family elder said on Wednesday.
“I was told to wait for this week to pass and then he will be home. That is what they said to me, but we are still going to confirm,” said Zuma’s 80-year-old brother Joseph.
It has been 10 days since Zuma was granted medical parole for ill health by the department of correctional services head Arthur Fraser. But little is known about when he will be discharged from the hospital he was admitted to for medical treatment in August.
Department spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo would only say that “the doctors treating him will decide” when the time is right to discharge Zuma.
However, another source confirmed what Joseph was told, saying Zuma was scheduled to be discharged from the hospital on September 24.
“This has not been confirmed yet, it is just a preliminary date. We are hoping it will be early next week, we are tired of waiting,” said the source.
The Jacob Zuma Foundation’s Mzwanele Manyi said the date of discharge will not be made public due to security reasons.
“Due to a frenzy of media enquiries, the foundation wishes to advise that due to security reasons, the discharge of [former] President Zuma from the hospital will not be announced. At the right time, subject to correctional services conditions, further announcements will be made,” said Manyi.
The 79-year-old former head of state started serving his sentence in July after he was found guilty of contempt of court for failure to comply with an order of the Constitutional Court to honour a summons to appear before the state capture inquiry.
He was sentenced to 15 months behind bars and spent several weeks of his incarceration in the medical wing of the prison before being moved to an external hospital for further treatment.
Source:Timeslive
