South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has called on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) not to prosecute him as pressure mounts for him to step down.
Zuma on Wednesday submitted documents to the NPA giving reasons why 783 counts of corruption relating to a $2 billion arms deal arranged in the late 1990s should be reinstated, Reuters reports.
Zuma faces a number of corruption allegations since taking office that he denies.
The NPA extended the deadline to the end of January for Zuma to make his representations before deciding whether to proceed against him.
South Africa’s High Court reinstated the graft charges in April 2016 and the Supreme Court upheld that decision in October, rejecting an appeal by Zuma and describing the NPA’s decision to set aside the charges as “irrational”.
Zuma has faced numerous calls to step-down with the ruling African National Congress (ANC) mounting the pressure after admitting to having discussed removing him as president before the end of his term.
