The leader of South Africa’s governing party, Jacob Zuma, is to appeal against a court ruling which resurrected corruption charges against him.
Mr Zuma’s lawyer said he would approach South Africa’s highest court to have the charges dropped.
On Monday, the appeals court quashed an earlier ruling that threw out charges in connection with a 1999 arms deal.
The appeal is expected to drag into the campaign for South Africa’s general election due in the coming months.
Mr Zuma remains the front runner for president as the candidate of the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
He denies the 16 charges of corruption, money-laundering and racketeering which stem from a controversial $5bn (£3.4bn) arms deal in 1999.
‘Good case’
“We have taken the decision to bring an application for leave to appeal,” said Mr Zuma’s lawyer, Michael Hulley.
“We think we have a good case we can present to the Constitutional Court.”
Last year, Mr Zuma won a reprieve on the corruption case on a technicality from a lower court.
The Supreme Court overturned that ruling on Monday, clearing the way for prosecutors to push ahead with their case against Mr Zuma.
The lower court ruling had also implied that former President Thabo Mbeki had meddled in the case, a claim the ANC used to sack him in September.
On Tuesday, Mr Mbeki said he felt vindicated that corruption charges had been resurrected against his rival, Mr Zuma.
The bitter row over whether there was any political interference in the case led to a number of senior ANC officials quitting the party and setting up a rival group, Congress of the People, which will challenge the ANC in the forthcoming elections.
Source: news.bbc.co.uk
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