S. Africa's ruling party voices respect for court order over Nkandla case

The ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Thursday expressed respect for the unanimous judgement delivered by the Constitutional Court over the Nkandla case.

"The Constitutional Court is and remains the guardian of the Constitution of the Republic and the final arbiter on matters before it, hence the ANC welcomes the clarity provided by the Court on the binding nature of the powers of the Public Protector," the party said in a statement.

The Constitutional Court (ConCourt) ruled on Thursday that President Jacob Zuma and Parliament flouted the Constitution by ignoring the public protector's findings into the Nkandla case.

The court also found that Zuma must repay for the upgrades at his private home in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal Province.

Parliament must determine the reasonable costs that Zuma must pay for the upgrades, the court ruled.

Judge Mogoeng Mogoeng said the Treasury must report back to the court within 60 days of this order.

Remedial action taken by Public Protector Thuli Madonsela against Zuma in terms of Constitution is binding, Mogoeng said.

"The ANC once again reaffirms our full confidence in the judiciary and the upholding rule of law in South Africa. Given the serious nature of the judgement delivered, the African National Congress will study it in detail and comment further in due course," ANC national spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said.

The opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) brought the application to the court last month, demanding an judgment ordering Zuma to follow Mandonsela's remedical recommendations.

Mandosela released the "Secure in Comfort" report in March 2014 into the final findings into the scandal, in which Zuma was accused of abusing public funding worht 246 million rand (about 16 million U.S. dollars) in security upgrades at his Nkandla home.

Madonsela claims that Zuma's family unduly benefited from the project and asks Zuma to pay part of the money on the project, a demand rejected by Zuma then.

Parliament then also dismissed Mandonsela's recommendations that Zuma repay a portion of the money spent on Nkandla.

Earlier this year, Zuma offered to pay a certain amount of money. But he said the determination of the amount should be independently and impartially determined so as to achieve an end to the dispute in a manner that meets the Public Protector's recommendations and is beyond political reproach. Endit