Ex-South African leader’s corruption trial date set as he fights another case to run for election

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Prosecutors say former South African President Jacob Zuma will go on trial for corruption next April. It’ll be four years after he was officially charged with taking bribes in connection with a multi-billion-dollar arms deal and 20 years after he was first implicated. Zuma is charged with corruption, racketeering, fraud, tax evasion and money laundering in relation to a huge deal the South African government signed to revamp its armed forces in 1999. The charges relate to a time before he was president. The trial will begin on April 14. Zuma pleaded not guilty to the charges in 2021 but the case has been subject to long delays.