NPA: bid to oust bosses ‘not urgent’

Lawyers allege abuse of process

THE urgent bid by constitutional lobby group Freedom Under Law (Ful) to have the court suspend senior National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) officials Nomgcobo Jiba and Lawrence Mrwebi was described by the NPA as an “abuse of process”.

Ful wants the Pretoria High Court to interdict Jiba, the deputy national director of public prosecutions and Mrwebi, the head of the specialised commercial crimes unit, from carrying out any official functions at the NPA, pending an application in the ordinary course for an order setting aside President Jacob Zuma’s decision not to start an inquiry into the fitness of the pair to hold office.

The court yesterday dealt with a preliminary point raised by advocates representing the National Director of Public Prosecutions Shaun Abrahams, Jiba and Mrwebi on whether the matter was urgent.

If the court finds the matter urgent, it will set a timetable on when it will be heard, but if not, Judge Bill Prinsloo will strike it off the roll.

Hilton Epstein, SC, for Abrahams, Zuma and Justice Minister Michael Masutha, said the urgency claimed by Ful was self-created.

He said Ful’s application did not raise any new issues 27 months after Judge John Murphy criticised Jiba and Mrwebi’s role in the decision to withdraw charges against suspended crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli.

“They (Ful) have known since 2013 what the issues are about,” Epstein said.

He said in its apparent bid to manufacture urgency, Ful said it had sight of a report by retired Constitutional Court Judge Zac Yacoob into the turmoil at the NPA only on October 28.

Epstein said the report by Yacoob commented on matters Ful already knew about.

Norman Arendse, SC, for Jiba, also said the application was not urgent.

He said there were two applications before the high courts in Pretoria and Cape Town that were ripe for hearing and dealt with the same issues.

One was launched by the Democratic Alliance seeking the suspension of Jiba, while another was by the General Council of the Bar seeking that Jiba, Mrwebi and North Gauteng head of public prosecutions Sibongile Mzinyathi be struck from the roll of advocates.

However, Max du Plessis, for Ful, said the organisation had engaged with Zuma for some time to take action against Jiba and Mrwebi.

Du Plessis said Ful approached the court on an urgent basis after it received Yacoob’s report on October 28.

“The Justice Yacoob report was the trigger,” Du Plessis said.

He said the Yacoob report confirmed there was an urgent need for an inquiry to be commissioned by the president.

The court will deliver judgment tomorrow morning. —