Did Simelane pull the plug on NPA boss?

Justice department Director General Menzi Simelane has emerged as a key player in the suspension of National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) boss Vusi Pikoli.

Pikoli was expected to make his final submission to former speaker of Parliament Frene Ginwala’s commission of inquiry into his fitness to hold office on Friday.

The Mail & Guardian was told by an NPA source that Pikoli’s submission is expected to focus on his professional relationship and dealings with three people: President Thabo Mbeki, Justice Minister Brigitte Mabandla and Simelane.

The source said Simelane played a vital role in ensuring Pikoli got the boot.

‘The fight between Pikoli and Simelane was a bitter one. It was a very dirty fight and it’s because of Simelane that Pikoli got the boot,” the source said.

The M&G‘s information is that Simelane and Mbeki’s legal adviser, Mojanku Gumbi, went to the NPA’s office shortly after Pikoli’s suspension. Simelane allegedly insisted that acting NPA head Mokotedi Mpshe ‘there and then” withdraw the warrant of arrest as well as the search warrant for police national commissioner Jackie Selebi.

‘This was highly inappropriate: Simelane and Gumbi followed Mpshe around while he was making telephone calls. They wanted to make sure that the warrant was withdrawn and the search warrant cancelled. Mpshe was railroaded by a very assertive and intrusive Simelane into withdrawing those warrants. Simelane’s actions immediately following Pikoli’s suspension are absolutely key to understanding why he [Pikoli] was suspended by the president,” the source said.

The M&G previously reported on the desperate bid to save Selebi: Mpshe met a Randburg magistrate at night to cancel Selebi’s arrest warrant and unsuccessfully tried to persuade Johannesburg High Court Judge Phineas Mojapelo to cancel a separate set of search and seizure warrants for Selebi’s house and office.

The M&G also learned that Simelane was about to accompany Mpshe on his visit to Mojapelo, but, in the end, he did not.

‘Everything Simelane did immediately after the suspension confirms that Pikoli was suspended in an attempt to protect Selebi and nothing else,” the NPA source said.

Simelane declined to comment this week, saying that any questions ‘regarding the suspension of Pikoli is sub judice”. He did confirm that the Ginwala inquiry would deal with the trip he and Gumbi made to the NPA’s offices. ‘I go to the NPA offices for a lot of reasons — that’s not the issue,” Simelane said.

Simelane is said to support the disbanding the Scorpions. After the ANC’s recent lekgotla for the party’s national executive committee he was quoted in The Star as saying: ‘The resolution taken at the national conference [to disband the Scorpions] says this must be done by June, so we will have to find a way to get this done.”