Jacob Zuma: NPF Urges Minister Lamola to Grant Compassionate Leave for Brother Michael's Burial

• The National Freedom Party believes that former president Jacob Zuma should be allowed out to bury his late brother
• The party is urging Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola to grant Zuma compassionate leave
• Senior member of the Zuma family Khaya Zuma has released Michael Zuma's funeral details, stating that Michael will be buried at Nkandla

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The National Freedom Party has made a plea to Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola requesting that former President Jacob Zuma be granted compassionate leave to attend his brother's funeral.

They argue that Zuma is not a hardened criminal and should be given the opportunity to lay his brother to rest with his family because Zuma is not a flight risk.

Zuma's brother, Michael Zuma, died last week after suffering from a long illness, reports IOL.

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Canaan Mdletshe, NFP spokesperson, highlighted former President Nelson Mandela's plight when he was a prisoner on Robben Island and how devastated he was that he was not given the opportunity to bury his mother and son, according to The Witness.

"We are told he was hurt, devastated and heartbroken. Understandably so. But it was the apartheid government that didn't care about a black person because black was associated with inferiority," said Mdletshe.

Mdletshe stated that the fact that we are now a democratic state and therefore all equal as another reason why Lamola should grant Zuma compassionate leave.

Allowing former president leave would go a long way in demonstrating that the current administration is a compassionate government that is caring, especially for the elderly,” said Mdletshe.

Spokesperson for the Correctional Services Department Singabakho Nxumalo says there are a number of factors that need to be taken into consideration in terms of the Correctional Services Act before Zuma can be granted compassionate leave, reports IOL.

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"There are a number of variables that are considered before a final decision is taken. The classification of an inmate plays a critical role," said Nxumalo.

One key factor is that every time an offender has to leave a correctional facility for a short period of time, a security strategy must be put in place.

Zuma's family releases Michael Zuma's funeral details

Jacob Zuma's older brother Khaya Zuma released the funeral details of their younger brother Michael on Sunday. He stated that Michael will be buried on Thursday in Nkandla.

"He will be laid to rest on Thursday at Nkandla... He will be buried at his own home as he had one," he told IOL.

Khaya has reiterated that Michael's death had nothing to do with the incarnation of former president Jacob Zuma and Michael had suffered an undisclosed illness for the past seven years.

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Zuma is currently being held at Estcourt Correctional Services in KwaZulu-Natal since 8 July. He was sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment by the Constitutional Court for being in contempt of court.

Defence Minister says there's no evidence of a coup, contradicts the President

In other political news, Briefly News reported that Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula spoke in a Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee and she stated that there was no proof that the unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal was insurrection or a coup attempt.

This follows news that President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that the recent violence in the two provinces was part of an insurrection. His comments were made on Friday evening when he addressed the nation.

The UDM's Bantu Holomisa posed the question to Mapisa-Nqakula about the possibility of a coup or an insurrection. The Defence Minister stated that neither was likely.

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She continued by explaining that the military was recording signs of a 'counter-revolution' in combination with criminality and thuggery. This conflicts Ramaphosa's statement that the unrest was a failed attempt at an insurrection.

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Source: Briefly News