Police admitted him to Estcourt Correctional Centre in his home town – the province of KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday. Police had earlier warned that they are prepared to arrest him if he refuse to hand himsef to them by midnight.

Court sentenced Zuma, 79, to jail term last week afta he failed to attend a corruption inquiry.

The sentencing sparked a legal drama in the country, with deadline imposed for midnight on Wednesday (22:00 GMT) for the arrest of the former president. The court handed him the deadline after he refused to hand himsef in on Sunday.

In a short statement, the Zuma Foundation said the former president has “decided to comply with the incarceration order” and hand himsef in to prison authorities.

His daughter, Dudu Zuma-Sambudla, later wrote on Twitter saying her father is “on his way [to jail] and he is still in high spirits”.

No former president in South Africa has faced a prison sentence before.

Zuma was sentenced on 29 June after he went against instructions to give evidence in an inquiry about corruption during his nine years in power.

The Guptas, a South African business family were accused of conspiring with politicians to influence the decision-making process when he was in office. But Zuma had repeatedly clamed to be a victim of political conspiracy.

Though his own party forced him out of office in 2018, the African National Congress (ANC), he still retains a body of loyal supporters, especially in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal.

On Sunday, crowds formed what they called a human shield outside Zuma’s palatial home as part of efforts to stop his arrest. Similar crowds gathered before he handed himself in on Wednesday.

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The South African government has said the stones discovered in the country which has led to a rush are not Diamonds but Quartz Crystal.

The Government gave this information one week after locals say they discovered diamonds in their village.

The National department of minerals and energy including enforcement and compliance units, plus geoscientists were sent to inspect the site.

Last week, many people from across the country rushed to Kwa Hlathi village after a cow herder discovered what he thought was a diamonds.

Videos shared on social media show as people dig through the ground in search of the precious stones.

The discovery of what is believed to be diamonds in Kwa Hlathi village of South Africa’s Kwa-Zulu Natal province just exposes how people are desperate to find a way out of poverty.

Studies carried out in the area shows that the site is geographically located at the edge of the Karoo dolerite sill and is not an area where diamonds are normally found.

What are the precious stones found in KwaZulu Natal?

The stones have been identified as quartz crystals which value is very low compared to that of diamonds.

The council of Geoscience will carry out further studies to see if other minerals are available in the area that can create jobs and improve the lives people living there.

The government has asked people to stop digging because illegal mining can have negative impact on the environment.

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