Zuma fights for letter to be read
Former President Jacob Zuma’s lawyers are fighting to introduce a letter – understood to have been written by ex-prosecutions boss Shaun Abrahams shortly after he decided to reinstate charges against Zuma – as evidence in his battle to permanently stop his corruption prosecution.
But the state objected to Zuma’s advocate Muzi Sikhakane reading the contents of the Abrahams letter, in which he allegedly asks the Hawks to conduct further investigations into accusations raised by former Thales lawyer Ajay Sooklal, into the court record.
Counsel for the state Wim Trengove argues that Zuma’s legal team will need to apply for the letter to be admitted into evidence.
Court was adjourned to allow the state and defence to discuss a possible resolution of the impasse, which could see the Abrahams letter either read out in court or thrown out as inadmissible.
Sooklal, meanwhile, has publicly confirmed that he will be a state witness against Zuma and Thales, should the case against the pair proceed.
In his affidavits to the Hawks, he reportedly claimed that Thales paid a €1m (R16m) donation to the ANC in exchange for the state dropping charges against it in October 2004.
Sikhakhane on Thursday contended that he had a letter – emanating from the NPA – that specifically raised concerns about the role that former Justice Minister Penuell Maduna allegedly played in the dropping of charges against Thales, which resulted in the arms company not being charged with Zuma’s former financial advisor Schabir Shaik.
This, Sikhakhane suggested, countered claims by the state that Maduna played a “minimal role” in the Zuma prosecution, and showed that – as late as March 2018 – the NPA had asked that allegations he had received bribes be investigated.
The Dispatch understands that Abrahams asked the Hawks to investigate a number of Sooklal’s claims under oath, including that:
● Former President Thabo Mbeki allegedly confirmed to Thales CEO Jean-Paul Perrier that French former President Jacques Chirac had discussed Thales with him and that he would then instruct Maduna and other senior ANC officials to look into the question of the withdrawal of charges the French company;
● Sooklal was present on April 5 2004 at a meeting where representations were made to against Maduna and then-prosecutions boss Bulelani Ngcuka to have charges against Thales withdrawn;
● Thales made a “thank you” payment to the ANC in April or May 2006 “for the withdrawal of the charges”;
● Maduna asked for “compensation” for his “services” in getting the charges dropped against Thales, and was paid €50,000. (Maduma has repeatedly denied this accusation, and questioned why it took Sooklal to make it.)
The revelations about the mysterious NPA letter came after advocates for the state on Thursday faced close questioning about why Ngcuka did not pursue corruption charges against Thales after its representative, Alain Thethard, reneged on his agreement to cooperate with the state’s investigation into Shaik.
Thethard had initially confirmed that he was the author of the so-called “encrypted fax” used to prove that Thales had agreed to a R500,000 a year bribe for Zuma, in exchange for his protection from any potential arms deal investigation. He retracted this evidence a month later.
Judges Esther Steyn and Bhekisisa Mnguni questioned NPA advocate Andrew Breitenbach about why, given that the state knew long before the case against Shaik commenced that Thethard had been dishonest, the state still chose not to pursue the company for corruption.
Breitenbach argued that Ngcuka had chosen to honour the deal that the state had with Thales, partially because of concerns that pursuing the company could result in delays in the Shaik prosecution.
Sooklal has publicly confirmed he will be a state witness against Zuma and Thales