Jacob Zuma, South Africa’s imprisoned former president, was transported to a hospital on Friday for medical observation, according to prison officials, just days before he was scheduled to appear in court for a corruption trial.
Zuma’s foundation said he was in hospital for a routine annual check-up. “No need to be alarmed, … yet,” it said in a tweet on Friday morning.
The Jacob Zuma Foundation’s spokesman, Mzwanele Manyi, confirmed in the afternoon that the former president’s physicians were still examining him and would advise him on whether he was competent to appear in court on Tuesday.
Zuma was taken to an outside hospital for additional examination after a routine observation at the prison, according to the Department of Correctional Services. The hospital was not mentioned.
“Everyone who is detained, including every sentenced prisoner, has the right to conditions of detention that are consistent with human dignity, including … medical treatment,” the department’s statement said.
