Cape Town - The Supreme Court of Appeal on Friday dismissed an application by former president Jacob Zuma for a stay of prosecution on the corruption charges that have haunted him for 15 years.
The SCA dismissed the application, in which Zuma contended that the high court in Pietermaritzburg erred in November by not granting him a permanent stay of prosecution, without hearing argument from Zuma's lawyers.
It held that the application had no reasonable prospect of success.
This means that Zuma will be back in court in Pietermaritzburg in May on charges stemming from an Arms Deal negotiated by the South African government in the late 1990s.
Zuma and French arms maker Thales are implicated in fraud, racketeering and money laundering.
The high court in February issued a warrant of arrest for the former president, which will be enforced if he should again fail to appear in court. His lawyers claimed he was ill from an undisclosed condition.