Former president Thabo Mbeki on Tuesday filed his responding affidavit to papers filed by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) opposing his bid in the Constitutional Court.

Tuesday was the deadline for Mbeki's lawyers to reply to the NPA, which is opposing his appeal against parts of Pietermaritzburg high court judge Chris Nicholson's ruling.

Nicholson ruled on 12 September that he could not exclude the possibility of political interference in the decision to charge ANC president Jacob Zuma with fraud and corruption.

Mbeki is appealing against "certain findings" by Nicholson in the judgment that also found the prosecution of Zuma on racketeering, money-laundering, corruption and fraud charges was invalid.

Mbeki is asking the Constitutional Court to order that the High Court "ought not to have made findings of and concerning" him "without having afforded him a hearing" and that these findings "constitute a violation of his rights".

He wants these "unfair and unjust" findings set aside.

But Zuma and the NPA opposed his application.

The National Director of Public Prosecutions Mokotedi Mpshe, argued that the NPA had already lodged an application to appeal the ruling in the Pietermaritzburg High Court.

The NPA said it feared that the Constitutional Court may rule on matters that were part of its application to appeal the Pietermaritzburg High Court judgment.

Sapa