2005-11-14,+Jacob+Zuma+hit+by+dirty+tricks+S+Indy

= Double blow for Jacob Zuma hit by dirty tricks campaign = Top counsel Kessie Naidu leaves defence team

Sunday Independent, Johannesburg, November 13, 2005 By Jeremy Gordin

Jacob Zuma, the former deputy president, was dealt a double blow this week - his star lawyer has quit his team and an apparent dirty tricks campaign has been launched against him.

The Sunday Independent has learnt that Kessie Naidu, SC, the spearhead of Zuma's defence team, has had to quit because of a conflict of interest.

And, according to the Zuma camp, a cruel disinformation campaign has been launched against Zuma: a number of newspapers have been given false "information" that a rape charge has been made against him.

Michael Hulley, Zuma's attorney, confirmed yesterday that he had been informed by a certain newspaper that it had been told that Zuma had allegedly raped someone about 10 days ago, and that a charge had been laid. He had also been told about the same "information" by other newspapers.

"As a result," said Hulley, "I contacted at least two police stations in or around the Johannesburg suburb where the incident was alleged to have taken place, as well as the sex crimes unit of the South African Police Service. But no one knew anything; there was no docket, and no victim. Needless to say, my client knew nothing about the matter either. You can draw your own conclusions from all that."

Yesterday morning, sitting in the Durban magistrate's court, where he was officially handed the national prosecuting authority's (NPA) provisional indictment against him and had his case referred formally to the Durban high court, Zuma looked unhappier than he has for a long time. His disconsolate expression may have been due to the news about Naidu. Nor can he have been happy about the disinformation campaign.

From now on, Naidu will represent only Thint Holdings and Thint, subsidiaries of the French arms and electronics giant, Thales, and also Zuma's two co-accused in the former deputy president's July 31 corruption trial.

Ajay Sooklal, Thint's attorney, told Zuma this week that Naidu had to "leave" and to represent Thint because he had been retained by Thales in April last year to act for the arms company in connection with the charges laid against it in Schabir Shaik's corruption and fraud trial.

Following this, Thales retained Naidu on "a watching brief" for the Shaik trial itself. Naidu and Thales then agreed that Naidu could lead the Zuma defence team, provided the French were not re-charged in connection with the same issues.

But now that Thint has been charged, alongside Zuma, with two charges of corruption arising from the Shaik trial and the arms deal, Sooklal learned in Paris this week from Thales' top executives that Naidu must henceforth act for Thint in all pre-trial and trial matters.

Naidu would not comment yesterday, since he is precluded from talking about his relationships with clients. But it is reliably understood from Sooklal that Zuma "gave Naidu his full blessing" and said he was glad that Naidu was still directly involved in the case.

Zuma had said he was aware that, since there is no conflict between the co-accused and since the co-accused have been charged with being in a joint conspiracy, Naidu's defence on behalf of the two Thint companies would in any case be to Zuma's benefit.

Senior counsels Kemp J Kemp and Jerome Brauns have been mentioned as possible successors to Naidu. During Zuma's court appearance of less than two minutes yesterday, the matter was handled by Brauns.

Naidu shot to prominence as evidence leader during the 2003 Hefer commission of inquiry into whether Bulelani Ngcuka, the former chief of the NPA, had been a spy for the apartheid regime. Naidu was dubbed "the silver fox" because of his wily and often aggressive style of cross-examination. He is understood to have been the prime mover behind the Zuma camp's strategy of launching a proactive and aggressive defence campaign whenever it can. Naidu is known to be politically savvy and well-connected, as well as street smart.

Yesterday's court proceedings were not only short but also low key, both inside and outside the court. ANC calls for discipline and good behaviour, as well as the deployment of several marshalls to control the crowd, helped prevent a repeat of the excesses that prevailed at Zuma's last court appearance.

"We learn from what happens - that is why things are better this time," said Kgalema Motlanthe, the ANC secretary-general, who attended the trial.

From: http://www.sundayindependent.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=1042&fArticleId=2992472