ADM fraud prosecutor leaves docket in Pretoria

FRUSTRATION was written on the faces of former Amathole District Municipality mayor Nomasikizi Konza and her three co-accused on Friday when the East London Magistrate’s Court postponed their fraud and corruption trial to November.

The trial – in which Konza is in the dock with former Nkonkobe ANC councillor Nanziwe Rulashe, her younger sister, Anita, Sigcinile Saba and Mawande Njeza – was postponed by East London regional magistrate Nomthandazo Vabaza, who said it was not worth it to continue in the absence of critical documents, including the case docket which the state had failed to bring to court.

She set the trial down for November 1, 2 and 9, and December 10. She said if they are not done by then, “we can postpone to July 2019”.

State prosecutor Diniso Ketani, who is based in Pretoria, failed to provide the defence teams with critical state witness affidavits, which he told court he had left in a case docket in Pretoria.

Ketani was described as brave by both defence Advocate Mike Maseti and Vabaza for starting a trial without a case docket in his possession.

This drama unfolded halfway into the testimony of the state’s second witness, investigating officer Captain Luphumlo Lwana, at the start of the trial on Friday.

A witness from ADM’s legal unit had earlier testified in court, before Lwana took the stand in the afternoon.

When in his testimony the Hawks’ top investigator referred to statements submitted by two state witnesses who are yet to testify, he was interrupted by the defence team which told the court they were not in possession of the affidavits Lwana was referring to, as required.

The defence had initially objected to Lwana taking the witness stand because he was not on the list of those to testify, with the defence saying his testimony would depend on “hearsay as he is not an ADM employee” and that “it will not take the state’s case forward”.

Ketani had to persuade Vabaza for Lwana to be allowed to take the stand. He said he wanted Lwana to testify because two of the witnesses he had intended to call were not available, with one out of the country and the other writing exams.

They allegedly defrauded the district municipality of more than R2.5-million under the pretext of funding the annual Miss Amathole Heritage beauty pageant at the University of Fort Hare in Alice in September 2014. —