Durban - A damning high court judgment that refers to Hawks head, Lieutenant-General Berning Ntlemeza, as “biased and dishonest”, and lacking in “integrity and honour”, bore no relevance to a new court action brought against him, the general insisted.
Ntlemeza was responding to Freedom Under Law and the Helen Suzman Foundation’s urgent application that he be interdicted from exercising any of his duties as the head of the Hawks.
This application is expected to be argued this week in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria and is pending a later application to set aside the decision by Police Minister Nathi Nhleko to appoint Ntlemeza to this position.
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Ntlemeza was appointed as head of the Hawks seven months after high court Judge Elias Matojane made these remarks in his February 2015 judgment.
The judge had overturned the suspension of then Gauteng head of the Hawks, Major-General Shadrack Sibiya, and had said Ntlemeza, acting head of the Hawks at the time, made false statements under oath when he suspended Sibiya.
Freedom Under Law and the foundation argue Ntlemeza’s appointment was irrational and unlawful.
In court papers - served on Ntlemeza, Nhleko and the government - the foundation’s director, Francis Antonie, said these remarks had direct relevance to the question of whether Ntlemeza was fit and proper to hold this “vitally important position”.
Antonie said Ntlemeza’s appointment was unlawful because the minister only considered his CV when he appointed Ntlemeza, and disregarded the judge’s remarks.
He said the matter was urgent because Ntlemeza had the power to make decisions which could have national ramifications and which were largely irreversible.
Apart from restructuring the unit, Ntlemeza has also been involved in the suspension of former provincial Hawks boss, Major-General Johan Booysen.
The Durban High Court recently ordered that Booysen be reinstated. However, Ntlemeza and the Hawks are petitioning the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) to overturn this ruling.
Last week, ANA reported that the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) was investigating Booysen’s complaint of perjury against Ntlemeza.
In opposing court papers, the police minister and the Hawks head have called for this application to be struck from the roll.
Ntlemeza said the allegations made against him were based on hearsay.
He argued that when interviewed for his current position, the panel also questioned him about Matojane’s judgment. He said he had also attached his explanation on this issue to his job application.
His SCA application for leave to appeal against this judgment was dismissed.
According to his current affidavit, Ntlemeza felt he had demonstrated that the allegations and findings made by the judge were “simply not true” and based on “conjecture and hearsay”.
In a press statement on Monday, former Constitutional Court Judge and Freedom Under Law chairman, Judge Johann Kriegler, said the findings made against Ntlemeza “are so damning they should disqualify him from holding any public office”.
“That he has been appointed head of the Hawks - our highest crime-fighting unit, charged with policing the most sensitive crimes - a position requiring scrupulous honesty, integrity and conscientiousness, strikes at the very heart of our criminal justice system,” his statement read.
Daily News
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