Durban - As the Zandile Gumede trial is set to resume in court this week, the Institute of Security Studies (ISS) says the government needs to illustrate the will to fight organised crime, and part of this is ensuring that witnesses testifying in high-profile cases are given adequate protection.
The ISS’s Gareth Newham was reacting to revelations that witnesses in the Zandile Gumede fraud and corruption trial were fearful of testifying.
The Mercury’s sister newspaper Daily News reported last week that State prosecutor Ashika Lucken told the Durban High Court on Monday that a witness could not come to court to testify after a shooting incident at her home on Saturday.
Lucken also said that the police had been inundated with phone calls from other witnesses that the State intended to call, the newspaper reported.
Newham said the multimillion-rand case provided a test of the government’s resolve to fight organised crime networks, which he said had grown massively over the years, and wielded massive influence in many spheres.
He added that in such cases evidence from witnesses was crucial in bringing to book individuals who were responsible for wrongdoing, stressing that it would be a setback if the case fell apart because witnesses could not testify owing to safety fears.
“This is a massive case because it features high profile political figures. If witnesses do not testify because of fear for their lives, this would be a development that would embolden organised crime networks, not only in KwaZulu-Natal, but across the country,” said Newham.
He said that a thorough risk assessment should be conducted for all witnesses, and measures taken to ensure their safety.
He said the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) had capable staff and a good conviction rate in the cases they pursued, but needed support on big cases.
“We should be very concerned when powerful figures get tried and there are issues of security or threats made against witnesses. And so this will be one of the cases that will be looked at as the point at which the government intensified or lost the fight against crime,” Newham said.
Gumede and her co-accused, who include former Durban city manager Sipho Nzuza, former exco member Mondli Mthembu, Robert Abbu, who was DSW’s deputy head, and Sandile Ngcobo, the former deputy head of supply chain management, among others, face several charges – including conspiracy to commit corruption, corruption, fraud, money laundering, racketeering, contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act and contravention of the Municipal Systems Act – relating to a R300 million tender scandal.
The DA also expressed concern over the shooting incident, with its leader in eThekwini, Thabani Mthethwa, saying it appeared to be an intimidation tactic by criminals who might be attempting to prevent the witness from providing crucial evidence in the case.
He called for enhanced witness protection in the case, saying such a move would enable witnesses to freely provide sufficient evidence to ensure the matter was successfully prosecuted.
The case will be back in court on Tuesday.