Pretoria - Newly-appointed National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Shaun Abrahams announced on Tuesday that he had reshuffled the top echelons of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
“You recall that I have stated on numerous occasions that it won’t be business as usual. As such, I’ve sent out an internal communication, communicating that I have reshuffled the leadership of this institution. This reshuffle has been made in line with my vision in taking this institution forward,” Abrahams told reporters at the NPA headquarters in Pretoria.
“It’s an internal matter and I do not intend to address it in the public domain. I implore upon you (media) not to listen to mischief-makers and rumour-mongers. It is specifically why I call these briefings so that you can hear it directly from me and not from anywhere else. Listening to others will only contribute to speculation and unnecessary instability in our institution and the country,” he said.
Abrahams urged South Africans “to resist the temptation to convict people in the court of public domain”.
“I once again reassure you to my commitment to lead this institution without fear, fear or prejudice and with the utmost due to God, to the Constitution and the rule of law.”
Ululation and clapping echoed in the briefing room from hordes of NPA staff that had joined media as Abrahams read out his statement. There was no opportunity for questions afterwards.
Moments earlier, Abrahams had announced that a decision had been taken to discontinue the prosecution of deputy director of public Prosecutions Nomgcobo Jiba.
He said fraud and perjury charges against Jiba would be formally withdrawn in court on Wednesday.
“Late yesterday (Monday) afternoon I received (deputy national director of public prosecutions responsible for the Pretoria Commercial Crime Unit), advocate Marshall Mokgatle’s decision and opinion in which he decided to decline prosecuting advocate Nomgcobo Jiba on the charges of perjury and fraud,” Abrahams said.
Abrahams said: “I’ve been assured that this decision is rational and sound in law and that there are no reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution. As such, this matter will be withdrawn in court tomorrow (Wednesday).”
Abrahams read Mokgatle’s full email to the media.
“The decision taken by the then acting NDPP, advocate Jiba, to authorise the racketeering prosecution of Johan Booysen and others was arrived at after briefings by the prosecution team and presentation of a memorandum for her perusal. Section 78 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA) of 1998 provides that ‘any person authorised to perform any function in terms of this Act shall not in his or her personal capacity be liable for anything done in good faith’.”
“The aforementioned provision clearly absolves Ms Jiba from any liability including criminal prosecution for having exercised the power in terms of the empowering provisions of POCA. There are no prospects of a successful prosecution and I, accordingly decline to prosecute advocate Nomgcobo Jiba for fraud and perjury,” Abrahams said.
He said that after reading Mokgatle’s opinion on the matter, he had also sought a further legal view from another director of public prosecutions.
“In that opinion, it is also recommended that a decision to decline to prosecute advocate Jiba be made,” said Abrahams.
Jiba was set to go on trial on Wednesday on charges which related to her decision to prosecute Booysen, head of the Hawks in KwaZulu-Natal, on racketeering charges.
In February last year, Durban High Court Judge Trevor Gorven threw out the charges against Booysen, who was suspended at the time. The judge went on to describe Jiba’s decision to charge Booysen as “arbitrary, [and] offend the principle of legality and, therefore, the rule of law and were unconstitutional”.
In his judgement, Gorven agreed with Booysen’s assertion that had Jiba lied about having certain statements before her when she decided to prosecute, and could therefore not have used them to make her decision.
Booysen had been accused of running a criminal enterprise consisting of members of the former Cato Manor Organised Crime Unit that he headed up.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Abrahams was planning to drop charges against Jiba.
The Democratic Alliance then threatened to haul Abrahams before parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services.
ANA