Johannesburg - In the wake of multiple high-profile SAPS suspensions, dismissals and reshuffling, a Benoni cluster commander whose name was blighted by fraud allegations is celebrating the withdrawal of criminal charges against her.
While Brigadier Vuyokazi Ndebele may no longer be in the firing line in the courtroom, however, her lawyer has said the supposedly false accusations or “witch-hunt” were a clear indication of the factionalism within the SAPS.
Ndebele was suspended last August and criminally charged for alleged fraud relating to the recruitment of entry-level SAPS candidates in the Moroka policing cluster.
She was accused of changing the recommended list of recruits to include candidates who had not met the SAPS’s minimum specifications.
Since the suspension, the brigadier’s lawyer, James Ndebele – no relation – has argued in and out of court that the charges never made sense.
In letters to the South Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to have the charges withdrawn, he said the charges were based on a statement filled with contradictions.
Key evidence against the brigadier was the statement by Captain Johannes Mokheseng that indicated she had insisted on adding the name of a particular applicant to the list of new recruits. However, The Star has seen the marks provided by the panel for the recruit, with Ndebele providing the lowest score on the panel.
“It is highly improbable and reasonably doubtful that our client would have allocated the lowest score and yet advise Mokheseng that (he) had ‘scored excellent’,” read James’s arguments to the DPP.
James said Ndebele had never been given the opportunity to provide a warning statement regarding the allegations against her and had been inappropriately arrested.
The timing of the accusations was suspicious, he said, because Ndebele had applied for a promotion to general, and that her unblemished record meant the increase in rank was all but secured.
The Star has seen the letter of response from the DPP, Andrew Chauke, dated January 14, stating his decision to withdraw all charges against the brigadier, but indicating the case of fraud and related charges to go ahead against Mokheseng.
While the brigadier was unable to comment on the situation without permission from her superiors, her lawyer said the case showed “a propensity of factionalism and witch-hunts in the SAPS”.
James added that Ndebele had not been informed on when she could return to work.
National police spokesman Lieutenant-General Solomon Makgale told a different story.
“Our understanding is that the charges have been withdrawn due to the fact that the prosecution wants to use Brigadier Ndebele as a witness,” Makgale said.
“We conducted a thorough investigation, the outcome of which enabled us to obtain a warrant of arrest. This means there are questions Brigadier Ndebele must answer.”
He said the disciplinary process against Ndebele would continue and would not be influenced by (the) court outcome.
Regarding the allegations of factionalism and smear campaigns, Makgale said: “The allegations made by Brigadier Ndebele’s legal representative are baseless as there are (no) facts to support them.”
Questions were sent to the National Prosecuting Authority earlier this week regarding the DPP’s decision, but no response had beenreceived at the time of publication.
The Star