Zuma supporters gear up for march to Durban court

Supporters of former president Jacob Zuma are amassing in King Dinuzulu Park ahead of a march to the Durban High Court on Friday morning.

Zuma is appearing on 16 charges that include fraud‚ corruption and racketeering. These charges relate to 783 payments he allegedly received as a bribe to protect French arms company Thint from an investigation into the controversial multi-billion-rand arms deal. The alleged bribe was facilitated by Zuma’s former financial adviser‚ Schabir Shaik.

A platoon of camouflage-clad MK veterans sang and danced in formation‚ as buses with more supporters slowly arrived.

The march‚ coinciding with Zuma’s second court appearance‚ will move from the park through the city centre to the courtroom steps.

The former president enjoys backing in KwaZulu-Natal‚ a traditional foothold for the ANC and his faction of leadership. 
Black business forums‚ controversial funeral parlour bosses and religious leaders have all settled in Zuma’s corner‚ lauding his stance on radical economic transformation and the expropriation of land without compensation.

Bishop Timothy Ngcobo of the National Interfaith Council of SA in KZN said they were there to show the world that they were behind the former president‚ whom they regarded as the "strong voice of radical economic transformation who managed to give our poor children the bread of free education."

-TimesLIVE