The high court date for the graft case against Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the former speaker of the National Assembly, has been pushed back to July 9.
The state made its intention to indict the 67-year-old for a high court trial known in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
Twelve charges of corruption and one count of money laundering are brought against Mapisa-Nqakula in connection with claims that, while serving as the defense minister, she accepted bribes from an army contractor totaling more than R2 million.
She turned herself in to police at Lyttelton Police Station in April and was set free on R50,000 bond.
The previous speaker was addressed by Magistrate VL Mahlangu, who said, “The state plans to arraign you before the high court for a trial there. Thus, the case is rescheduled until July 9, 2024, to give the state time to draft the indictment. As of right now, you are free on bond. We’ve increased your bail.
During the initial court appearance of the former speaker in April, the state said that it was contemplating the addition of another accused party.
Prosecutor Bheki Manyathi disclosed on Monday that they had chosen not to proceed with the plan.
The individual in question was to face a single charge of money laundering rather than corruption. Since the last time, we have given it some thought and decided not to add any more accused.
Henry Mamothame, a spokesman for the National Prosecuting Authority Investigating Unit, expressed confidence in a strong case in the interim.
“Well, if we’re not sure that the evidence we have in front of us will hold up in the trial court, then we don’t bring any matters before the court.” Therefore, we are optimistic, but as we are aware, the judge will make the final judgment.
Legal Fees
Last month, Defence Minister Thandi Modise announced that Mapisa-Nqakula’s plea for aid with her legal bills had been rejected.
According to Modise, they were not permitted by ministry policy to offer her predecessor legal assistance.
Section 6.2 of the State Legal Representation Policy stipulates that the coverage “relates to any claim filed or initiated against any individual stemming from and/or closely associated with an alleged act and/or omission on the applicant’s part while performing official duties, or where applicant genuinely and objectively thought they were acting in the course and scope of their employment, or is founded on any grounds stemming from or related to applicant’s official duties.”
“We have determined, in accordance with this policy, that the accusations made against the former Minister had nothing to do with how she carried out her duties at the time. The applicant has received correspondence to this effect, and the matter is officially ended at this point, according to the ministry’s statement.
Between 2016 and 2019, Mapisa-Nqakula served as the minister of defense; during that period, she is accused of accepting bribes from a well-known army contractor.
The former speaker had been involved in a heated court battle to prevent her arrest before turning herself in.
She attempted desperately to get an interdict to stop her detention when a search and seizure occurred at her Johannesburg home in March, but the Pretoria High Court denied her request.
Her defense team contended in court that since they had not heard back regarding when the investigators intended to make her arrest, they were left with no option except to request a temporary interdict.
Mapisa-Nqakula preferred a summons to court rather than being placed in handcuffs.
When delivering her decision, Judge Sulet Potterill stated that the court lacked the authority to order the minister of police and other officials to call the former speaker rather than arrest her.
Whistleblower
The charges against the former speaker stem from allegations made by well-known businesswoman in the defense sector, Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu. She is the sole director of Umkhombe Marine, a logistics company that conducted business with the South African National Defence Force, and she claimed to have paid R2 million in bribes to Mapisa-Nqakula.
Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu was charged in the Specialized Commercial Crimes court with fraud in connection with a R100 million tender. But the case has subsequently been removed from the record.
The businesswoman is a witness under Section 204 in the Mapisa-Nqakula case.
A witness may be granted protection from prosecution by the court under Section 204 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
Mapisa-Nqakula’s attorneys contended during the bail hearing in May that the state mostly relied on one witness and attempted to undermine her credibility by insinuating that she was driven by her own desire to avoid being charged.
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