The blackened fragments spread out on the table look at first glance like no more than a scattering of charcoal, left over from a long-dead fire. But on closer examination one sees that the fragments are grouped, and that each group has its own printed label. In one corner, in a plastic lunchbox-type container, are the smallest fragments of all.
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African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma’s rights to a fair and speedy trial have been violated with impunity, and the independence and credibility of organs of state have been severely compromised, the ANC Youth League said on Wednesday.
The Directorate of Special Operations, or the Scorpions, had another nail hammered into its coffin on Tuesday, with the tabling of the General Laws Amendment Bill in the National Assembly. The draft legislation, now headed for the committee stage, provides for the establishment of a new division in the South African Police Service.
President Thabo Mbeki must go, and he must go now, Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille said on Monday. ”In a constitutional democracy such as ours, it is untenable for a president with his track record to remain in office,” she said in a statement. It is ”in the interests of South Africa” that Mbeki step down as president.
Fidentia chief executive J Arthur Brown is expected to appear in court in Cape Town on Monday after he was arrested on charges of theft, fraud and money laundering on Friday. He was arrested in Cape Town’s central business district appeared in the district court. The case was postponed to Monday and Brown was to remain in police custody until he appeared in court.
Fidentia chief executive J Arthur Brown has been arrested on charges of theft, fraud and money laundering, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Friday. ”J Arthur Brown was arrested on the strength of a warrant following the investigation that was carried out on a separate leg of the bigger Fidentia investigation,” said NPA spokesperson Tlali Tlali.
The arrest warrant against police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi was cancelled last year because acting prosecutions boss Mokotedi Mpshe thought the Scorpions might undermine him and serve it while he was still reviewing the matter, the inquiry into Pikoli’s fitness to hold office heard on Friday.
Bones collected from an Eastern Cape farm suspected to be that of the Pebco Three will be examined, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Thursday. The NPA said it found around 12kg of bone material, identified out of 250kg of burnt material.
Presidency Director General Frank Chikane made conflicting statements about his treatment at the hands of the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions (NDPP), the Ginwala commission heard on Thursday. Chikane earlier told the hearing into whether suspended National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli was fit to hold office, that he had been treated badly by the NDPP.
The real reason for the suspension of National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Vusi Pikoli related to a criminal probe into police chief Jackie Selebi, Pikoli’s lawyers said on Wednesday. ”It was to put a spoke in the wheels of the investigation and prosecution of the police National Commissioner, Mr Jackie Selebi,” they said.
The public hearings on suspended National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli’s fitness to hold office are an ”inquisitorial” as opposed to an ”accusatorial” process, inquiry head Frene Ginwala said on Wednesday. ”I want to emphasise that this process is not a judicial one,” said Ginwala in an opening statement.
The inquiry into the suspension of National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli, which starts on Wednesday, will see several high-profile witnesses testify, including Reverend Frank Chikane and Scorpions boss Gerrie Nel. President Thabo Mbeki suspended Pikoli as the head of the NPA on September 24.
If there was ever a period that so ably demonstrated the febrile nature of politics it has been the past week or two. As Jacob Zuma strode into Downing Street after having met with the British prime minister, looking surprisingly at ease in the media glare, Thabo Mbeki was quietly meeting King Mswati III which, with all due respect to the Swazi monarch, pretty much sums up the state of play: Zuma on the ascendant, Mbeki on the slide.
Debate on the future of the Scorpions gained new steam on Monday as the government released a report from an inquiry it had commissioned into the elite detective unit. The Scorpions still have a role to play in the country’s crime-fighting efforts, states the report that was submitted to President Thabo Mbeki two years ago.
The existence of the Scorpions is ”as valid today as it was at conception”, says the Khampepe report released on Monday. ”Despite indications that crime levels are dropping, it is my considered view that organised crime still presents a threat that needs to be addressed through an effective comprehensive strategy,” states the report.
President Thabo Mbeki’s government has approved the disbanding of the elite Scorpions crime-fighting unit, bowing to pressure from supporters of rival Jacob Zuma who accused it of political abuse. Mbeki’s Cabinet adopted two Bills last week paving the way for the end of the Directorate of Special Operations.
The Ginwala commission set up to inquire into the suspension of National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) head Vusi Pikoli said on Saturday it was aware that Pikoli is allegedly being blackmailed by a hacker. Commission spokesperson Lawson Naidoo said the commission had been notified by Pikoli’s lawyers.
A hacker has allegedly gained access to suspended National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli’s computer and is attempting to blackmail him, his attorney said on Friday. ”An individual is claiming to have hacked Mr Pikoli’s system. The hacker is threatening to release Mr Pikoli’s documents to the press, if he is not paid,” said his attorney Aslam Moosajee.
A plan to reduce the impact of rising food prices on the poor was tabled during an ordinary meeting of the Cabinet in Pretoria on Wednesday. The proposed short-, medium- and long-term interventions were also aimed at ensuring household and national food security, the Government Communication and Information System said in a statement.
The full Khampepe commission report will be gazetted on May 5, the official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Monday. DA leader Helen Zille said the presidency had written to the DA to inform it of the move. Zille said the report was a crucial source of information during the legislative process to decide on the future of the unit.
The presidency has launched an 11th-hour bid to prevent embarrassing confidential information behind the suspension of National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) boss Vusi Pikoli from being made public. Hours before Pikoli was to release documents detailing what he told President Thabo Mbeki and others about Jackie Selebi’s alleged corruption, he received a settlement offer from the government.
Suspended National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) boss, Vusi Pikoli, will not ”at this stage” make public his submissions to the Ginwala commission. ”Mr Pikoli remains committed to doing so at the appropriate time,” said Deneys Reitz, attorneys acting on behalf of Pikoli, in a statement on Friday.
Fidentia chief executive J Arthur Brown was on Thursday late for a scheduled appearance in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court, on charges that include fraud involving the Transport, Education and Training Authority (Teta). In the dock without him were co-accused Dr Piet Bothma, Teta’s chief executive, and Jacobus Theart.
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The case involving African National Congress president Jacob Zuma in Mauritius has been postponed, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Friday. The case has been postponed to May 7. Zuma’s lawyer told SABC news that the case had been postponed because the defence team wanted to study the affidavit filed by Mauritian Attorney General.
Documents relating to Robert McBride were among those stolen recently from the Johannesburg High Court, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Wednesday. But these papers were not directly linked to the drunken-driving case of the Ekurhuleni metro police chief, the NPA said in a statement.
Documents stolen from the Johannesburg High Court in a recent robbery did not include dockets relating to the drunken-driving case of Ekurhuleni metro police chief Robert McBride, the National Prosecuting Authority said on Wednesday. Armed robbers broke into the court on Sunday night.
About R6,9-million has been spent on nine cases pertaining to Ekurhuleni metro police chief Robert McBride and senior officers, Ekurhuleni mayor Duma Nkosi said on Tuesday in reaction to photocopies of three invoices given to the media by Ekurhuleni councillor Izak Berg.
The African National Congress (ANC) on Tuesday accused the Democratic Alliance (DA) of a persistent hatred towards it following a meeting between the parties on the future of the Scorpions. ”The only thing the DA and the Scorpions have in common is their persistent hatred of the ANC,” ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe said.
Armed robbers raided the Johannesburg High Court and carted away documents, including those dealing with high-profile organised crimes, an official said on Monday. ”The armed robbers broke into the high court at about 10pm on Sunday, overpowered the security guards and tied them up,” Johannesburg director of public prosecutions Charin de Beer said.
It is possible that the crime-fighting Scorpions may not be incorporated into the South African Police Service by June, African National Congress national executive committee Siphiwe Nyanda said on Thursday. He was speaking at a seminar hosted by the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria.
Efforts to push legislation through Parliament to disband the Scorpions are falling behind schedule, the deputy president’s office said on Thursday. ”It’s mainly because of consultation … which has taken much longer than was thought,” said Thabang Chiloane, spokesperson for Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
One of the alleged masterminds in the Fidentia scandal was arrested by the FBI in the United States, the National Prosecuting Authority said on Tuesday. Spokesperson Tlali Tlali said Steven William Goodwin was arrested following a request by the Directorate of Special Operations, better known as the Scorpions.