The South African parliament on Tuesday voted against an impeachment of President Jacob Zuma following his implication in a corruption scandal, news website News24 reported.
According to the report, 233 legislators voted against the motion to impeach Zuma, with 143 in favour and no abstentions.
The Constitutional Court said last week Zuma had violated the constitution when using about 15 million dollars to upgrade his rural homestead in the town of Nkandla.
Zuma later apologised to the nation for the way he had used taxpayers’ money for upgrading his home but denied any conscious wrongdoing.
Dominated by Zuma’s African National Congress (ANC) party, parliament was expected to reject the impeachment proceedings launched by the main opposition party Democratic Alliance (DA).
The proceedings were seen as a blow to Zuma, who became the first South African president to face an impeachment debate in parliament.
The president had argued that the house upgrade was for security purposes, but it also included a swimming pool, a cattle enclosure, a chicken coop, a visitors’ centre and an amphitheatre.
ANC representative John Jeffery told parliament that the court ruling gave no reason for impeaching Zuma.
But DA leader Mmusi Maimane argued that corruption had infected the entire ANC “like cancer”.
