Former South African president Jacob Zuma has turned himself into police, according to a statement issued by the Jacob Zuma Foundation late Wednesday.

“Please be advised that President Zuma has decided to comply with the incarceration order,” the foundation said, referring to the 15-month sentence handed down last week and the ongoing legal battle over the decision.

“He is on his way to hand himself into a Correctional Services Facility in KwaZulu-Natal. A full statement will be issued in due course,” the foundation added.

Zuma originally was given five days to report to police custody after sentencing on contempt of court charges, but made clear he did not intend to turn himself as legal appeals were filed and political tensions mounted.

The former president, long tangled up in some of South Africa’s most high profile corruption investigations, resigned in February 2018 after investigations linked him to the wealthy Gupta families, their business dealings, and South African state entities including the country’s Eskom utility provider.

A controversial 2016 State of Capture report implicated Zuma, who has denied allegations of corruption and refused to appear in court. Zuma also questions the conclusions of an inquiry led by Deputy Chief Justice Judge Raymond Zondo – now acting chief justice, as of Thursday – and claims the sentencing order is unconstitutional.

A Zuma foundation statement last week said the former president “has expressed his doubts about the lawfulness of the Zondo Commission, the biased manner in which it is being conducted, and the fact that it has been transformed into a ‘slaughterhouse’ and a forum in which all kinds of unsubstantiated and defamatory allegations have been made against him.”

Image: Presidency SA file