Court rules in favour of state capture probe

THE WIDESPREAD allegations of state capture – the hijacking of state officials’ authority by private interests, particularly the wealthy, politically connected Gupta family – was deeply worrying and must be thoroughly probed by an independent panel.

This was part of a ruling of the North Gauteng High Court yesterday.

“Whether the remedial action (prescribed by former public protector Thuli Madonsela) is appropriate, the court held that there is compelling prima facie evidence that the relationship between the president and the Gupta family had evolved into state capture, and that the matter is of great public concern,” Judge President Dunstan Mlambo said as he delivered the ruling of a full bench of three high court judges.

For the second time the court ordered that President Jacob Zuma must personally foot the bill for legal costs the government incurred in the court processes against Madonsela’s state capture report.

Earlier, the same court ruled that

Zuma must personally be held liable for the costs of his 2016 court bid to interdict the release of Madonsela’s state capture report.

Judge Mlambo said the stance adopted by Zuma last year on the status of the report was “completely unreasonable”. He said there was no basis for Zuma’s application to interdict the release of the report.

The judge said that commissions of inquiry were, by their nature, open and transparent to the public. “Taking into consideration the budgetary constraint, and the scale of the investigation to be done (the court finds) the judicial commission of inquiry suitable to carry out the investigation.”

Last year, Madonsela endorsed that a commission of inquiry be established by Zuma but that the presiding judge should be chosen by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng. Zuma has maintained that Madonsela overstepped her boundaries and had no right to tell him to appoint a judge to head up the inquiry.

In yesterday’s judgment, the high court ruled that Mogoeng would select the judge to preside over the commission.

“The president is directed to appoint a commission of inquiry within 30 days, headed by a judge solely selected by the chief justice,” ruled Mlambo.

“The president shall take steps which are necessary to give effect to the remedial action (prescribed by Madonsela) and ensure that the judge who heads the commission of inquiry is given powers to appoint his/her own staff, and to investigate all the issues using the record of the public protector’s investigation and the state capture report.”

The court also ordered that the commission of inquiry is to be given powers of evidence collection that are not less than that of the public protector.

“The president shall submit a copy with an indication of his intention regarding the implementation to Parliament within 14 days of releasing the report.”

The full bench of judges ordered that the commission of inquiry be “adequately resourced” by the South African National Treasury.

“THE PRESIDENT IS DIRECTED TO APPOINT A COMMISSION OF INQUIRY WITHIN 30 DAYS