Jacob Zuma seeks leave to appeal R28.9 million repayment order

Former President Jacob Zuma will turn to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, on December 1, 2025 in a bid to obtain leave to appeal last month’s judgment ordering him to pay back the money incurred during his private litigation over the years - all of them slightly more than R28.9 million.

Judge Anthony Millar earlier ordered Zuma to make this payment to the State Attorney, as well as pay interest as calculated at the prescribed rate, which runs into more millions. But Zuma’s legal team indicated shortly after the judgment that they will not leave matters here, as they maintain that he should not face the hefty legal bill, as the State Attorney from the start agreed to foot this bill, until it reconsidered the matter and decided he was not entitled to State funding.

Zuma’s counsel, Advocate Thabani Masuku, last month told the high court that it is strange that the Presidency and the State Attorney, who previously defended the funding of Zuma's legal woes vociferously, now turn around and want him to repay the same money.

He told Judge Anthony Millar that Zuma is a victim of “unconstitutional violence". Judge Millar gave Zuma 60 days in which to settle his debt. Failing to do so, the State Attorney is directed to have a writ of execution issued by the Registrar of the Court for the attachment and sale of his immovable and/or movable properties to satisfy the judgment debt.

This includes his presidential pension benefit, or portion thereof, if required and subject to an order of court authorising that such attachment order can be issued. Judge Millar also ordered that the State Attorney is required to report to the court on affidavit within three months from the date of the order, and thereafter every three months until Zuma’s debt is paid.

Zuma’s appeal bid, however, places these orders on ice, pending the outcome of appeal proceedings. Even if Judge Millar turns his application for leave to appeal down, Zuma will still have the option to turn to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) to ask for leave.

Last month’s application by President Cyril Ramaphosa, the State Attorney and the Democratic Alliance, followed a 2024 SCA ruling that found Zuma was not entitled to taxpayer-funded legal support and that the state must be reimbursed.

Masuku argued that the Presidency and the State Attorney are under the wrong impression that the payment obligation flowing from the SCA ruling places Zuma under a legal duty to reimburse the state.

He further submitted that the state “is the perpetrator of this unconstitutional violence.". According to Masuku, while the SCA said the money must be paid back, it never expressly said it had to come from Zuma’s pocket.

Masuku described the Presidency and State Attorney’s actions as “mean and vicious,” arguing that it was unjust for the state to pursue Zuma for repayment. It could recover this money from a number of people who were beneficiaries, including the attorneys, he said.

Masuku concluded that Zuma was “just an innocent recipient of the money". The R28.9 million was allocated to cover Zuma's legal expenses during his defence against charges related to the 1999 arms procurement deal. These funds were used for legal representation and associated costs throughout the protracted legal proceedings.

Zuma’s leave to appeal bid next month before Judge Millar is expected to be heard virtually.

zelda.venter@inl.co.za