Mbeki part of plot, claims Zuma

Johannesburg - African National Congress leader Jacob Zuma has accused President Thabo Mbeki of taking part in a political conspiracy to smear him with corruption charges, a South African newspaper said on Wednesday.

Zuma, who defeated Mbeki for the leadership of the ANC in December, is accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from a French arms manufacturer.

He is scheduled to go on trial in August for corruption, fraud, money-laundering and racketeering.

In an affidavit filed in Mauritius, where Zuma is trying to block officials from handing over documents for his trial, Zuma said Mbeki and a prosecutor co-ordinated his 2005 dismissal as deputy president and subsequent prosecution, reported the Star newspaper.

Mbeki and Vusi Pikoli, the head of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), which has spearheaded the case against Zuma, have said previously that they arrived at their decisions independently.

"Needless to say, I have difficulty in believing this to be the truth," Zuma said in the affidavit obtained by the Star.

Some investors 'spooked'

"I verily believe that my prosecution has, from inception, been politically motivated as a result of the political beliefs and principles which I hold dear and which some of my political adversaries seek to negate by denying me the right to occupy important political office," he said.

A populist who has the backing of trade unions, communists and other leftists, Zuma has spooked some investors who fear South Africa could lurch to the left if he succeeds Mbeki, who must step down as president in 2009.

In his affidavit, Zuma alleges that it was his concern for "the masses and the poor" that prompted his political enemies to try to deny him the ANC leadership and the state presidency.

Zuma's lawyer, Michael Hulley, and the NPA were not available for comment.

The accusations are the latest blow in a protracted legal battle that threatens to increase political instability in Africa's largest economy.

Zuma has said he will bow out of the presidential race if convicted, but it is possible his trial could overlap with the 2009 elections.

His lawyers are trying to stop the case, as they did in 2006 when they succeeded in persuading a judge to dismiss earlier corruption charges on a procedural matter.

Defence lawyers recently filed an appeal with the Constitutional Court to overturn a lower court ruling allowing prosecutors to use at trial documents seized in 2005 raids on properties belonging to Zuma and Hulley.

Constitutional Court

They argue the search warrants used in the raids were illegal and violated their privacy, property and other rights.

Zuma's team also wants the Constitutional Court to strike down another ruling that cleared the way for South African prosecutors to ask Mauritius to hand over documents, which they claim contain evidence that bribes were solicited on Zuma's behalf.

A separate application by Zuma asks the Mauritius Supreme Court to block the handover.