A South African court on Tuesday granted the state permission to obtain documents from Mauritius which could implicate ex-Deputy President Jacob Zuma in a new corruption case.
The Durban High Court decision could be a blow to the resilient and controversial politician, who is expected to be a strong candidate in the race to lead the ruling African National Congress (ANC) when it picks a new leader later this year.
Given the ANC's political dominance, its leader is all but guaranteed to become South Africa's president in 2009. Once seen as the front-runner to succeed President Thabo Mbeki, Zuma was fired as Mbeki's deputy after he was implicated in the corruption trial of his former financial aide, Schabir Shaik involving an 1999 arms procurement scandal. Zuma was charged but the case collapsed last September. Prosecutors continued to investigate and in April, the court approved their bid to request copies of documents that Mauritian authorities seized from a branch of a French arms contractor.