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Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (Zulu: [geɮʱejiɬeˈkisa ˈzʱuma]; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth democratically elected President of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. Zuma is also referred to by his initials JZ (pronounced jay-zee) and his clan name Msholozi.Zuma served as Deputy President of South Africa from 1999 to 2005, but was dismissed by President Thabo Mbeki in 2005 after Zuma's financial adviser, Schabir Shaik, was convicted of soliciting a bribe. Zuma was elected President of the African National Congress (ANC) on 18 December 2007 after defeating Mbeki at the ANC conference in Polokwane. On 20 September 2008, Mbeki announced his resignation after being recalled by the ANC's National Executive Committee. The recall came after South African High Court Judge Christopher Nicholson ruled Mbeki had improperly interfered with the operations of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), including the prosecution of Jacob Zuma for corruption.
Zuma led the ANC to victory in the 2009 general election and was elected President of South Africa. He was re-elected as ANC leader at the ANC conference in Mangaung on 18 December 2012, defeating challenger Kgalema Motlanthe by a large majority, and remained president of South Africa after the 2014 general election, although his party suffered a decline in support, partly due to growing dissatisfaction with Zuma as president. On 18 December 2017, Cyril Ramaphosa was elected to succeed Zuma as President of the ANC at the ANC Conference at Nasrec, Johannesburg. Subsequent months saw growing pressure on Zuma to resign as President of South Africa, culminating in the ANC "recalling" him as President of South Africa. Facing a motion of no confidence in parliament, Zuma announced his resignation on 14 February 2018, and was succeeded by Ramaphosa the next day.
Zuma has faced significant legal challenges before, during, and after his presidency. He was charged with rape in 2005, but was acquitted. He has fought a long legal battle over allegations of racketeering and corruption, resulting from his financial advisor Schabir Shaik's conviction for corruption and fraud. On 6 April 2009, the NPA dropped the charges against Zuma, citing political interference, although the decision was successfully challenged by opposition parties. After extensive state-funded upgrades to his rural homestead at Nkandla, the Public Protector found that Zuma had benefited improperly from the expenditure, and the Constitutional Court unanimously held in 2016's Economic Freedom Fighters v Speaker of the National Assembly that Zuma had failed to uphold the country's constitution, resulting in calls for his resignation and a failed impeachment attempt in the National Assembly. Zuma's presidency is estimated to have cost the South African economy R1 trillion (approximately US$83 billion). He has also been implicated in reports of state capture through his friendship with the influential Gupta family. He survived multiple motions of no confidence, both in parliament and within the ANC.
Since 2018, the Zondo Commission established by Zuma has been investigating corruption and fraud in the government, and Zuma himself has been called to testify before the Commission. He has not returned to the inquiry since withdrawing on the fourth day of his testimony in July 2019. In a separate legal matter, in 2018 the High Court of South Africa backed a decision to reinstate charges from 2009 of corruption against Zuma relating to a $5bn (£3bn) arms deal from the 1990s. He faces 16 counts of corruption, racketeering, fraud, and money laundering, accepting a total of 783 illegal payments. Zuma pleaded not guilty in May 2021. On 29 June 2021, he became the first South African president since the end of white-minority rule in 1994 to receive a prison sentence. The Constitutional Court issued a 15 month sentence for contempt of court after Zuma defied an earlier court order to return and testify before the Zondo Commission.

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