President Jacob Zuma cleared in $2 bn arms deal

A commission of inquiry led by South African judge Justice Willie Seriti has absolved President Jacob Zuma from more than 700 charges of corruption related to an arms deal back in the 1990s.

#SouthAfrica Zuma says arms probe clears government of #corruption https://t.co/b9VW86xm0o pic.twitter.com/Qqq7HP0UAI

— Anti-Corruption (@BAC_Portal) April 21, 2016

The deal worth over $2 billion dollars was to purchase European military equipment in the 1990s and has cast a shadow over politics in the country.

In a televised address, Zuma said the inquiry had found no credible evidence against him or any government officials of that time.

“No evidence was found as well through the commissions own independent inquiries,” he said.

He added that the panel found the purchase of the weapons to be justified,as they were being used properly and recommended no further action.

Zuma who was then the deputy president, had been implicated alongside his former financial adviser Schabir Shaik, who was found guilty and jailed in 2005 of trying to solicit bribes worth 500,000 rand a year for Zuma from a French arms company.

Zuma has always denied any wrong doing and criminal charges against him were dropped.

He went ahead to establish the commission after he became president in 2009.

The four year investigation has however come under criticism as the government appointed inquiry was said to be toothless and was being used in an attempt to end the case.

Reuters