March 2007News for NPA staff, friends and stakeholders

KKhhaasshhooKKhhaasshhooStrategy 2020 embraces all

RReeccooggnniittiioonn:: At the Stakeholders conference gala dinner on March 28, Minister Brigitte Mabandla andAdv Vusi Pikoli congratulated former National Director of Public Prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka (left)and former NPA spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi (far right) on their contributions to the organisation.

Story on page 3

PPrrooppeerr bbuurriiaall ffoorr tthhoossee eexxhhuummeedd KKwwaaZZuulluu NNaattaall iinn ffooccuuss MMeeeett tthhee nneeww ffaaccee ooff tthhee NNPPAAThe remains of political activist LooksmartNgudle were exhumed by the NPA

This month Khasho looks at how the KZN DPP meets its challenges.

Panyaza Lesufi is the new spokespersonof the NPA. Khasho profiles him in thisedition.

Page 10 Pages 6 & 7 Page 8

The NPA‘s new Strategy 2020launched at the Stakeholder Confer-ence last week, strongly rests on

joint problem-solving and co-operation be-tween partners and stakeholders.

Invited at the conference were delegatesfrom the seven stakeholder segments wehave identified: Governors, Customers,(individuals, communities, industries & in-stitution, the state and other states) Em-ployees, Partners, Suppliers, the accusedand civil society.

Indeed, very few elements in the NPAStrategy 2020 can be executed by the NPAon its own. We NPA has to work with itspartners to solve, prevent crime and ensurethe delivery of justice.

Wis requirement is reflected in theNPA’s new Mission 2020: Guided by theConstitution, we in the National Prosecut-ing Authority ensure justice for the victimsof crime by prosecuting without fear,favour or prejudice and by working withour partners and the public to solve andprevent crime.

We work statement that sets the NPAon the road to achieving its Vision 2020:Justice in our society so that people can livein freedom and security.

We NPA is firm in its resolve to work

with partners and stakeholders to deliverjustice for the greater good of South Africaand the continent. For this reason, the NPAmade use of the Stakeholder Conference2007 - and many other opportunities thatwill arise - to work together with partnersand stakeholders to share experiences, les-sons, information, skills, expertise andeven resources where necessary.

We are doing this because we want toengage more regularly with partners andstakeholders as we are interested in theiropinion and advice.

We NPA furthermore wants to be well-governed, and this calls for transparency.

We are hosting more events such as thisone because we acknowledge that the NPAis answerable to its governors, partners andstakeholders. We therefore want to keepthem informed of our strategic directionand performance.

We NPA is looking at consistently de-livering value to its stakeholders within theparameters of the Constitution, the law andgenerally accepted governance principles.

To enhance our service delivery, wehave to be informed of the needs of societyand our customers - those vulnerable tocrime, the victims and state witnesses.

22 Letter from the National Director

NPA committed to workingwith partners, stakeholders

National Director of ProsecutionsAdvocate Vusi Pikoli

Contents

3““TThhiiss ssttrraatteeggyy iiss iinnffoorrmmeedd bbyy oouurr ssttaakkeehhoollddeerrss””

4PPrroosseeccuuttoorrss ttoolldd ttoo wwoorrkk wwiitthh iinntteeggrriittyy

5AAiimmiinngg ffoorr bbeetttteerr sseerrvviiccee ddeelliivveerryy

6 & 7RReeggiioonnaall FFooccuuss:: KKwwaaZZuulluu NNaattaall

9SSCCCCUU--DDuurrbbaann rreeaacchheess oouutt..

8MMeeeett tthhee nneeww ffaaccee ooff tthhee NNPPAA

10NNPPAA eexxhhuummeess LLooookkssmmaarrtt NNgguuddllee’’ss rreemmaaiinnss

11SSttaaffff nneewwss // DDSSOO TTeeaamm SSppiirriitt

12NNPPAA iinn tthhee nneewwss // UUppccoommiinngg EEvveennttss

9NNPPAA ggrraanntteedd rriigghhtt ttoo rreeqquueesstt ddooccuummeennttss

33NPA News

NPA exhumes Looksmart Ngudle’s remains

Staff news / DSO Team Spirit

NPA in the news / Upcoming Events

NPA granted right to request documents

“This strategy informed byour stakeholders”The NPA has engaged its stakehold-

ers and partners to ensure a moreeffective criminal justice system at

a three day conference held from 28 to 30March at the Gallagher Estate.

National Director of Public Prosecu-tions Vusi Pikoli publicly launched Strat-egy 2020 at the conference saying that thestrategy was a culmination of three yearsof crafting and drafting.

“Wrough this strategy we want tomake sure that we have a happy work-force that conserves its responsibility to-wards the people of South Africa. Wisstrategy is connected to the reality. It is aguiding light as we carry out our func-tions.

“As the NPA we want to make a mean-ingful contribution to the lives of ordi-nary South Africans. We want tocontribute to a society that is free fromwant and free from fear. We want to con-tribute to an improved criminal justicesystem and that is how we want to bejudged,” added Pikoli.

“Wis strategy is informed by ourstakeholders and partners, and if we don’twork together with our partners it won’twork. Our front is at the local level andthat is where our battle is defined andwhere it will be won,” he said.

Delivering her keynote address, Justiceand Constitutional Development BrigitteMabandla told the delegates that “as youlaunch Strategy 2020 you should alsothink about sustainable systems to takeyou there. Were’s a needfor greater synergieswithin the Justice CrimePrevention and Security(JCPS) cluster. Access toservices and the eradica-tion of poverty requirescollective action.”

Charles Leacock, Director of PublicProsecutions in Barbados, addressed thehigh profile conference focusing on crimechallenges, giving an international andAfrican perspective.

Leacock was followed by Finance Min-ister Trevor Manuel who dealt with thetopic: We new struggle for freedom: theeconomic front in the face of crime.

Manuel said that government wascommitted to the fight against crime andhas allocated over R55bn to the CriminalJustice System. To give the delegates abetter picture of the crime situation,

Dr Johan Burger fromthe Institute for SecurityStudies, gave a presenta-tion on crime trends inSouth Africa.

Wrapping up the firstday’s proceedings, was agala dinner in which Pikoli presented for-mer NDPP Bulelani Ngcuka and formerNPA spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi withspecial awards for their contribution tothe work of the organisation.

“It’s two years eight months since I leftthe NPA but when I walked in I felt at

home. I’m proud of you.When you hurt, I hurt andwhen you succeed I feel it,”said Ngcuka.

Nkosi added: “My stintat the NPA was not in-formed by any idea of re-ceiving an award one day

but by the noble ideal of working withoutfear, favour or prejudice.”

We second day of the conferencestarted with a presentation by Deputy Na-tional Police Commissioner Andre Pruis.We presentation was divided in two partswith the first one dealing with the SouthAfrican Police’s strategy and the secondwith the challenges and plans for the Fifa

World Cup in 2010.We Human Sciences Research Coun-

cil’s (HSRC) Director of Knowledge Sys-tems Craig Schwabe gave a detailedpresentation on the environment in

which crime was thriving,touching on the socio-de-mographic profiles, futuretrends and implicationsfor the criminal justicesystem.

We delegates also got achance to discuss the many challengesfacing the NPA in the form of commis-sions. Some of the topics dealt with in-cluded the NPA’s role in building abroader morality to reduce crime (goodgovernance); the NPA’s role in crime pre-vention; the NPA’s role in strengtheningcriminal investigations; the NPA’s role inresolving victimization justly, efficientlyand effectively and the NPA’s role inbuilding confidence in the criminal justicesystem.

We conference came to a close on thethird day with report backs from thecommissions.

No less than 95 organisations rangingfrom government departments, business,the international community, non-gov-ernmental organisations and civic organi-sations participated in the deliberationsduring the conference. CEO MarionSparg thanked all that participated: “It’snot the end of the process as the NPA willcontinue to engage with stakeholders”.

We want to contribute toan improved criminal jus-tice system and that ishow we want to be

judged.

OOrrggaanniisseedd:: The Stakeholder conference.organising team was acknowledged for theirhardwork in making the gathering a success.

It’s not the end of theprocess as the NPA willcontinue to engage with

stakeholders

44 NPA in the News

‘Without integritywe disintegrate.”So said the

National Director of PublicProsecutions (NDPP) AdvVusi Pikoli during the openingof the Senior ManagementConference held at InandaConference Centre inFourways, Gauteng.

We three-day conferenceheld early in March, broughttogether more than 200members of the SeniorManagement System (SMS) ofthe NPA and attracted some ofthe country’s leading legal andmanagement practitioners.

“Prosecutors withoutintegrity become persecutors.Without integrity we do awaywith the legitimacy of theprosecution services and bringinto disrepute the whole justice system,”said Pikoli.

Pikoli admitted that the NPA had in therecent past been subjected to all sorts ofattacks, some valid and some withoutsubstance.

“However, the manner in which we doour work will vindicate us. We need to befearless in carrying out our work becausethe moment we are scared, we won’t beable to do our work with integrity,” saidPikoli.

His opening remarks were followed bythe ever thought-provoking DeputyMinister of Justice and Constitutionaldevelopment Advocate Johnny De Lange.

We vice-chancellor of the University ofSouth Africa Professor Barney Pityana,focused on “universal ethical orientation”.

We chairperson of Titan Capital RuleKhoza, focused on the African paradigm ofleadership.

Transnet CEO Maria Ramos, stressedhumility and visibility as the essence of

leadership. “A leader’s conductinforms the organisationalculture,” she said.

Corporate governance guru Judge Mervin King toldthe conference that leadershipwas about “quality and notquantity” and urged theparticipants to create a cultureof intellectual honesty in theworkplace.

Academic and BHP BillitonChairman Dr Vincent Maphaitold the conference that “thepower of an individual ororganisation lies in their moralcredibility.

Joel Netshitendze head ofpolicy in We Presidency,decried what he called a “fear ofoutrage.”

Netshitendze also urged theNPA not to “squander the

public goodwill” saying rules andregulations alone were not enough”?

Judge Bah who addressed theconference on the last day, from theWitwatersrand Local Division, told themanagers that “the country, society, and even the bench appreciate the workyou do.”

We judge stressed that the “role of aprosecutor excludes any notionof winning or losing.

“His or her function is toassist the court to deliver justicebased on the facts”.

Also attending the conferencewas Member of Parliament AdvMight Madasa, who posedprobing questions throughoutthe proceedings.

Asked what his impressionswere after three days ofdeliberations, Madasacommended the NPA for organizing aconference of this nature, saying it was

well-structured and had good speakers. “We atmosphere was

conducive for good discussionsand interaction.

“ My sense is that this shouldnot be a once-off conference. Itneeds to be expanded.

“I guess one of thechallenges facing the NPAleadership is to depoliticise theinstitution in the eyes of thepublic.

“Communication with thepeople who go to court is the

biggest challenge facing the NPA,” addedMedasa.

Without integrity we do away with the legitimacyof the prosecution services and bring into disrepute the whole justice system

Joel Netshitendze, head of policy in ThePresidency urged the NPA not to squan-der the public’s goodwill.

Prosecutors told towork with integrity

We need to befearless in

carrying out ourwork becausethe momentwe are scared,we won’t beable to do ourwork withintegrity

Maria Ramos

55NPA News

Aiming for better service deliveryThe National Prosecution Services (NPS) have for the first

time, held a conference for its administrators to ensure acoordinated and better service delivery. .

We conference which attracted over 300 delegates was heldin Durban from February 28 to March 2 under the theme: A co-ordinated approach to ensure better service delivery.

We main speaker, Adv J Smit who represented the Head ofNPS, Adv MJ Mpshe SC said administrators played a crucial rolein ensuring that the office of the NPS was effective and efficient.

He told the delegates that they were a critical link in theteam.

We role of administrators in ensuring the success of Strategy2020 was also highlighted. Strategy 2020 aims to improve effi-ciency within the criminal justice system by promoting a closerworking relationship between the NPA and its partners andstakeholders. We session proved to be popular with many of thedelegates as one said, “I am very grateful to finally understandthe NPA Strategy 2020.”

Motivational speaker Buyane Zwane encouraged delegates tothink outside the box when executing their work.

“You are not just working, you are serving people of thiscountry, your mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers…so do itwith love,” are some of the words of wisdom he shared with theadministrators.

On the last day of the conference, heads of various units,namely Human Resources, IMSC and Communications, com-mitted themselves to improving their units.

Most delegates said they have gained a lot from the confer-

ence and felt motivated to do more and better.“I feel valued by my principles. It is good to know that admin-

istrators are also as important as everyone else in the organisa-tion. I appreciate that there was a conference focusing on therole of administrators; I wish we had included all NPA adminis-trators, not just from our business unit, “were some of the com-ments from the delegates.

NPS Corporate Manager Charity Mpofu challenged delegatesto visibly demonstrate a coordinated service delivery. ”Wewhole organisation will be watching whether we deliver on ourpromises or not,” she said

IImmppoorrttaanntt rroolleess:: Administrators play a crucial role in ensuringthat the offices of the National Prosecuting Services run effec-tively and efficiently.

Scenes from the Stakeholder conference

CCoommiinngg ttooggeetthheerr:: (left) Finance Minister Trevor Manuel and special advisor in the office of the National Director of the NPAKalyani Pillay at the Stakeholder conference on March 28.(middle) Strategy and Risk Executive Manager Mariaan van Kaam, Minister Brigitte Mabandla and Adv Vusi Pikoli share a lightmoment.(right) Deputy National Police Commissioner Andre Pruis presented the SAPS strategy on the handling the plans and challengesit would face with the 2010 FIFA World Cup

Provincial Focus66

Khasho spoke to the Director of Public Prosecutions in KwaZulu NatalAdv Shamila Batohi about the

challenges facing the region and its areasof focus.

How does geography present challengesfor your office?We’re one of the largest regions, with 29percent of thecountry’s population.

It’s a largegeographic area whichpresents its ownchallenges. We havecourts in very remoteareas. With so manyloyal and hardworkingprosecutors, I’m alwaysamazed at how manyare prepared to go theextra mile and deliver.

What do you see askey areas of focus?Looking at the NPAbroadly, we need tofocus on clearlydefined goals in a fewcritical areas. We mostimportant challenge forus is to increaseefficiency in the courts therefore the caseflow management project is one of the keyprojects here in KwaZulu Natal.

One of our big strategic objectives is tocontribute to the growth of the SouthAfrican economy. Werefore our focus onenvironment and wildlife crimes speaks tothat.

Also in as much as our core business istraditional criminal cases, we need to startfocusing on the environmental crimes. It’sour planet at stake and for generations tocome, they will look back to what we put inplace for them.

Traditional organised crime is also anational focus. I feel passionate about this.We have to work hard to make an impactby focusing on the market of thesecriminals.

It’s about supply and demand and that’swhere I feel we’re missing the boat.

We people who provide the market forthese criminals should be dealt withseverely.

We only way to get to grips with this isto focus on crime prevention andrestorative justice to reduce recidivism.

We have the NGO Khulisa, a nationalcrime prevention initiative piloting arestorative justice project in Phoenix.

Wat area wasselected becauseprosecutors there werealready working withinthe restorative justicemindset.

Housebreaking hasbeen identified as one ofthe priority crimes inthe region, and it’s onthe increase. If peoplecan’t feel safe in theirown homes, we have areal problem.

In Pietermaritzburgwe’ve implementedspecial housebreakingcourts which haveproved very successful,and we have plans toroll this out to the restof the province.

Tell us more about the Guilty Pleaproject.It started around 2003 and is specific to ourregion. We sensitise police and prosecutorstowards suspects who want to plead guiltyat the outset. In these instances theinvestigating officer will contact a highcourt advocate and the case will go ontothe high court roll immediately. It takesapproximately 5 days for the case to finalisefrom the date of incident.

We’ve involved the justice centre toensure that the rights of the accused arelooked after. An example of this speedyjustice in action was the Rattray murdercase, where the accused was convictedwithin seven days of the murder. Around30 to 40 cases are prosecuted in thismanner each year since we started.

It’s being driven by High Court AdvEngelbrecht and Adv Sheriza Ramouthar.

Meeting the challenges head on

Adv Shamila Batohi

Nipping wildlifecrime in the budMore than 1 000 environmental crimecases are in court in KwaZulu Natal,ranging from minor contraventions toserious organised crime matters.

And, if unchecked, environmentaland wildlife crimes could have adevastating impact on the province’seconomy, says Deputy Director ofPublic Prosecutions Adv Gert Nel.

Nel is responsible for co-ordinatingthe prosecutions of wildlife crime in theprovince and works with the WildlifeCrime Working Group (WCWG).

A partnership between EzemveloKZN Wildlife, the South African PoliceService and the NPA, the working groupwas established in August 2002, in termsof the uMkhuze Declaration, inresponse to concerns about the lack ofcapacity to deal effectively with wildlifecrime in the province. It is the first suchcollaboration in the country since policeunits dealing specifically with thesecrimes were shut down, leaving anenforcement vacuum.

For the past five years the workinggroup has been slogging to overcome itschallenges, which include having a vastarea to police in a province which hostsone of the busiest ports in the world,porous borders with Mozambique andSwaziland, a lack of resources andcapacity, apathy and a lack of knowledgeamong enforcement agencies and thepublic.

With environmental crimes there isusually no single victim, Nel says,making it more difficult to investigateand prosecute such crimes. Toovercome this, the working group hasembarked on a province-wide educationand awareness campaign.

“We are struggling through thisprocess. It’s not easy,” says Nel, but addsthat he is hopeful the pioneeringinitiative will continue improving itseffectiveness and give the country asuccessful model on which to base anational strategy.

Adv Gert Nel isresponsible for co-ordinating theprosecution ofwildlife crime inKwaZulu Natal

77Provincial Focus

Deputy DPP: AdvSheriza Ramouthar

Adv MaliniGovender

Adv MontyNaicker

Dep Admin Mng:Edna Rudder

Deputy DPP: AdvRoss Stuart

Deputy DPP: AdvGert Engelbrecht

PA to the DPP:Pam Saltmarsh

Point Road in Durban has always been adifficult area to police.

Recently renamed Mahatma GandhiRoad, it and the surrounding area at-tracts pimps, prostitutes, drug dealersand homeless children, in addition tothousands of holiday makers each year.

But the area, which forms a beltaround some of Durban’s most beautifulbeaches, is also an old residential dis-trict which is undergoing dramatic de-velopment as the city tries to clean upand boost its revenue.

It is no surprise then, that a commu-nity court was situated at the PointRoad police station as part of a nationalpilot project which has nine such courtsaround the country.

Headed by Senior Public Prosecutor

Val Melis, who is based in a small “cara-van” office on the police station prem-ises, the court’s two prosecutors finaliseabout 150 cases a month.

Melis, who has been on the job forabout two months, says she is slowlybuilding relationships of trust with thepolice and different communities in thearea.

She was on the ground when policeshut down seven illegal nightclubs inthe area which residents identified asnotorious drug dens.

She is impressed with the station’sintelligence gathering and crime analy-sis abilities, but says the challenge nowis to “try to persuade the police to opendockets and fingerprint every personthey detain”.

“My view is thatthis will eventually reduce crime in thearea,” she says, adding that the Point po-lice station is no worse resourced thanany other. “Were is a great deal of fearin the Point community and we have towork really hard to change this.”

We pilot project is supported by theIndependent Projects Trust. Were is notelephone in the caravan, but Melis’s of-fice is hi-tech nonetheless. We trustsupplies the office with a cell phone, alaptop, 3G internet connection and adigital camera.

What about the future of the pilotproject?

“We almost cannot afford to let it[the community court] not carry on,”says Melis.

WHO’S WHO IN KZN

Fast factsWWoorrkkiinngg LLaanngguuaaggeess:: Zulu, English and AfrikaansAAddddrreessss:: 301 Church Street, PietermaritzburgDDiirreeccttoorr ooff PPuubblliicc PPrroosseeccuuttiioonnss:: Adv Shamila BatohiDDeeppuuttyy DDiirreeccttoorrss ooff PPuubblliicc PPrroosseeccuuttiioonnss::Adv Sheriza Ramouthar, Adv Gert Engelbrecht (Pietermar-

itzburg), Adv Ross Stuart (Pietermaritzburg), Adv Rita Blum-rick (Pietermaritzburg), Adv Gert Nel, Adv Themba Mjoli (Spe-cialised Tax Unit)CChhiieeff PPrroosseeccuuttoorrss::Sagren Naidoo (Pietermaritzburg), Eric Sibeko (Durban),Philile Sibeko (Empangeni), Ray Sansom (Port Shepstone),Andre Loubser (Ladysmith), Amy Kristnasamy (Pinetown)CCoorrppoorraattee MMaannaaggeerr:: Mfanafuthi Simelane

High hopes for Community courtOOnn tthhee jjoobb::Senior PublicProsecutor ValMelis says: “I’llnever clean upall of Point, butas long as I canmake adifference to thelives of thearea’s people, Iwill be satisfied.”

88 NPA People

The former spokesperson for theGauteng Department of EducationPanyaza Lesufi, has joined the Na-

tional Prosecuting Authority (NPA).Lesufi takes over from Makhosini Nkosi

as spokesperson for the NPA.Lesufi says he is aware the position is a

mammoth task but he’s up for the chal-lenge.

Asked why he decided to join the NPA,Lesufi says, “I’ve never really chosen whereI go in my career. It is how this countryevolves that places me in the various positions that I’ve held up to now. I must behonest, I never imagined myself being here,but I’m happy I am.”

He is a seasoned communicator whohas sharpened his skills in the various postshe has held at different government de-partments in the past ten years, mostly inGauteng.

Prior to that, he led students as presi-dent of the Student Representative Council

(SRC), while studying for a Business Ad-ministration and Marketing degree at thethen University of Natal which is nowcalled the University of KwaZulu/Natal.

A soccer enthusiast and aMoroka Swallows fan, Lesufialso served as a trustee andspokesperson for the Ellis ParkDisaster Fund.

“Wis is a tough position; I re-alise that, but I’m not fazed byit,” he says. “I’m aware that com-paratively speaking, this jobdeals with much more seriousand sensitive issues than what Ihave dealt with in the past. Wefield of law enforcement is newto me and I still have to learn thejargon.”

Having said that, Lesufi acknowledgesthat although different in some ways; hisprevious work experience will contributegreatly to his success at the NPA. “Without

my past experience, I would sink in thisjob.”

Most importantly he says, “I have takenthis job in order to entrench the democracy

we fought so hard for; and to en-sure that lawlessness is not al-lowed to prevail in our country.Were are many people who hadto die fighting for this democ-racy and we have to protect it bymaking sure that those whobreak the law are called to ac-count”

His vision is to beef up mediarelations at the different regionaloffices of the NPA. “We wouldnot have given a true reflectionof our work, if we don’t tell sto-

ries of what we do in the regions.” Tladi Tladi will be working with Lesufi

as deputy spokesperson. He was previ-ously a Senior Special Investigator at theDirectorate of Special Operations.

Meet the new face of the NPA

II hhaavvee ttaakkeenntthhiiss jjoobb iinn oorrddeerrttoo eennttrreenncchh tthheeddeemmooccrraaccyy wweeffoouugghhtt ssoo hhaarrddffoorr;; aanndd ttoo eennssuurree tthhaatt

llaawwlleessssnneessss iissnnoott aalllloowweedd ttoopprreevvaaiill iinn oouurr

ccoouunnttrryy

Newly elected spokesperson Panyaza Lesufi says this is a tough position but he’s ready for the challenge.

99NPA News

The Specialised Commercial CrimesUnit (SCCU) in Durban hasadopted a community of children

orphaned by AIDS. We outreach programme, organised

and co-ordinated by Advocate ReshmaAthmaram cares for children from the Val-ley of a Wousand Hills, just outside Hill-crest.

Close to 50 families in the area, areheaded by children.

According to a study by the ActuarialSociety of South Africa, 40 percent of peo-ple living in the area, are HIV-positive.

Last year, prosecutors collected foodand clothing which they dropped off onvarious visits to the Valley. “We joy and ap-preciation from old grandmothers was in-describable,” says Athmaram.

A needs assessment conducted by theprosecutors found that many of the chil-dren did not have social grants, or theother set of grandparen ts was illegally col-lecting the children’s grants.

We prosecutors teamed up with inves-tigating officers from social welfare andarranged a session to assist the grandpar-ents and orphans. “We aim was to leavethe adopted community empowered forthe future,”Athmaram says

She says what they are doing is in linewith the NPA’s 2020 strategy on crime pre-vention. “Crime prevention begins withcommunity care.

We need to create an enabling environ-ment not just for the sake of these or-phaned children or our consciousness butfor the future of our own children andgrandchildren,” Athmaram says.

SCCU-Durban reaches outMembers of the Durban Spcialised Commercial Crimes Unit brought fun andlaughter to dozens of orphans and their grandmothers at the Valley of a Thou-sand Hills. They brought clothes and food which had been collected last year.

NPA granted right to request documentsKZN Deputy Judge President Phillip Lev-ensohn has granted the NPA request for aletter asking Mauritian authorities tohand over documents pertaining to al-leged meetings between African NationalCongress deputy president Jacob Zuma,convicted businessman Schabir Shaik andFrench arms manufacturer Wint.

We documents include the 2000 diaryof Alain Wetard, the former chief execu-tive of Wales International's SouthAfrican subsidiary Wint(Pty) Ltd, whichreportedly details a meeting in March

2000 between him, Zuma and Shaik. WeNPA alleges that an agreement on aR500,000-a-year bribe for Zuma wasreached at this meeting.

In his judgment, Levensohn rejectedZuma and Wint's assertion that legal pro-ceedings against them were still pending.We NPA was still bound by a March 2006order issued by Judge Pete Combrinckthat any letter of request would have to begranted by a trial judge.

"I reject this submission," said Leven-sohn. "In my view when a case is struck

off the roll prior to plea the criminal pro-ceedings pending are terminated."

Speaking shortly after Judge Leven-sohn handed down his decision, Zuma'sattorney Michael Hulley said Zuma wouldlodge an application for leave to appealagainst the decision. He said it "would beimproper and premature" to indicatewhich points of Levensohn's ruling wouldbe contested in the appeal.

Should Levensohn reject this, Zumamay petition the Supreme Court of Ap-peal in Bloemfontein.

1100 NPA News

The community of Mamelodi cameout in their numbers to give support during the exhumation of

the remains of struggle activist Looks-mart Ngudle.

We National Prosecuting Authority’sPriority Crimes and Litigation Unit beganinvestigations to locate Ngudle’s remainslast year at the request of his son SiyandaNgudle.

After going through a number of records, they located Ngudle’s remains.

We exhumation was conducted on March 1 by Luis Fondebrider, Presidentof the Argentine Anthropology Forensic Team; together withMorongoa Mosothwane fromWits University’s ArchaeologyDepartment and WabangManyapelo from the Universityof Cape Town’s Anatomy De-partment.

Ngudle was the first recordedpolitical activist’s death in deten-tion.

He, together with a group of Umkhonto we Sizwe members from Cape Town, weredetained and taken to Pretoriawhere they were interrogatedand severely tortured by members of thepolice force.

Ngudle’s involve ment in politics began

in the 1950s. He was an active member ofthe ANC, the South AfricanCommunist Party (SACP) andthe South Africa Congress ofTrade Unions (SACTU).

In May 1963 an order banning Ngudle from participating in political activi-ties was issued and he was con-fined to the WynbergMagisterial district in CapeTown.

Two months later, policeswooped on his place of hid-ing.

He was arrested and movedto Pretoria where he was detained at Pre-toria North Police cells.

In September 1963, Ngudle was found

hanging in his cell.Tshwane mayor, Gwen Ramakgopa also

attended the exhumation.During her address, she emphasised the

importance of giving proper honour to in-dividuals like Ngudle who died fighting forfreedom and democracy.

“Wat is why the government is buildinga number of monuments around the coun-try, which will not only serve as a reminderof the selflessness of those who laid downtheir lives but will help educate the youthof our country so that they never take forgranted the freedom they now enjoy,” saidRamakgopa.

Ngudle’s family seeks to give him a proper burial once DNA tests have confirmed that the remains are in-deed his.

NPAexhumesLooksmart Ngudle’s remains

Tshwane mayor Gwen Ramakgopa comforts members of the Ngudle family.

TThhee mmoonnuummeennttssaarroouunndd tthheeccoouunnttrryy wwiillllhheellpp eedduuccaatteetthhee yyoouutthh ssootthheeyy nneevveerr ttaakkee ffoorr

ggrraanntteedd tthheeffrreeeeddoomm tthheeyyeennjjooyy ttooddaayy

Ngudle’s family seeksto give him a properburial once DNA testshave confirmed that theremains are his

1111Staff News

Advocates take silkThree Senior advocates have been granted Senior Counselstatus (sometimes referred to as ‘taking silk’) by the Presi-dent of South Africa Thabo Mbeki. Director of Public Prose-cution in Johannesburg Charin de Beer, Senior StateProsecutor in Cape Town Anthony Stephen and Deputy Di-rector of Public Prosecution in Grahamstown Chris de Klerkhave received this honour.

New appointmentsTladi Tladi has been appointed deputyspokesperson of the NPA. He was previ-ously a Senior Special Investigator at theDirectorate of Special Operations.

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Newly appointed advocates:

Adv K J A NtimutseAdv F J PienaarAdv R Hoffman

Team spirit DSOWe Directorate of Special Operations(DSO) in KwaZulu Natal is using SouthAfrica’s most loved sport, soccer, as theirteam building tool.

We DSO hosts monthly soccer teambuilding sessions at Ethekwini municipalgrounds where they play for the Fuhlufloating trophy, sponsored by colleagueK.H. Ngema, who named the trophy afterhis father.

We teams, consisting of both men andwomen, have members from all the de-partments in the office.

Organised by corporate managerMluleki Chagi, the first team buildingmatch took place on February 16.

Initially, four soccer teams wereformed, namely Mkhonto FC, Tango FC,Admin FC and X-Ray FC but due to anoperation of delivering Scorpions pam-phlets in a community outreach pro-gramme and other work commitments,the team building exercise only saw twoof the four teams take to the field.

. “We initially expected that we’d havefour teams, but the show had to go on!”says Chagi.

Some members ofthe other teams endedup joining MkhontoFC and Admin FC astheir substitutes

Admin FC beatMkhonto FC by 3-1in the final knockoutsession. Admin FCconsisted of membersfrom the Admin, Op-erations, Support andIT departments.Chagi was coach Ce-leste Adams cap-tained the team. Welosing team MkhontoFC, was coached byWilliam Nicholson and captained byLeonard Sheriff. It consisted of membersfrom Crime Analysis, Organised Fraudand Corruption departments.

Admin FC has to defend their trophyat these monthly team building sessions.

Chagi says they ultimately want tohave trophies for all sporting codes dur-ing their monthly team building exercises.

Soccer is the first code to have startedwith because of its popularity.

“We teambuilding sessions are verygood for the office. With teambuilding,you are able to build a very strong andunited workforce. Wis ensures superbproduction and the achievement of goalsand objectives of the organisation,” said asatisfied Chagi.

WWiinnnneerr:: Celeste Adams from the winning team Admin FC andK H Ngema who sponsored the Fuhlu floating trophy.

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1122 NPA in the news

PPuubblliisshhiinngg EEddiittoorr:: Ntokozo Gwamanda –NPA Communications UnitCCoonnssuullttiinngg aanndd MMaannaaggiinngg EEddiittoorr:: Nomusa CembiDDeessiiggnneerr:: Paula Fray & AssociatesSSuubb--EEddiittoorr:: Saaleha Bamjee

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News in Brief

The fraud case against Letlakano Ra-maema, the former National ProsecutingAuthority (NPA) senior advocate, waspostponed to May 21 in the SpecialisedCommercial Crimes Court in Pretoria.Ramaema, 39, from Lesotho, joined theNPA in 1999. He was arrested by HomeAffairs officials in October last year onsuspicion of fraudulently obtaining aSouth African identity document. Thecase was postponed to allow for furtherinvestigations.

Former NPA man’s case postponed

Making headlines

DSO Annual National ConferenceThe Directorate of Special Operations is holding its An-nual National Conference on the 19 - 21 April at the Em-peror’s Palace in Kempton Park

Rustenburg Gala DinnerBafokeng’s Senior Prosecutor Cavin Mphaga is hostinga gala dinner and awards evening for prosecutors on 20April at the Orion Safari Lodge in Rustenburg. The eventstarts at 6pm.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Constitutional court upholdsbusinessman’s appeal

The Constitutional Court has upheldthe appeal of a businessman who hadchallenged the national prosecuting au-thority's (NPA) seizure of his property.Kumarnath Mohunram's property wasseized after he pleaded guilty to operat-ing an illegal casino in Vryheid in 2001.The NPA argued that the property hadbeen instrumental in the commission ofa crime, but the court found that therewas no direct link between the propertyand the criminal activities.

(above) The appointment of Panyaza Lesufi as NPA spokesperson made na-tional news with a profile in the Sunday Times on 18 March and an appear-ance on Morning Live in March.(left) The 16 March issue of Financial Mail included a 16-page special reporton the NPA, profiling the NPA business units and looking at its transforma-tion strategy.

NDPP AdvVusi Pikolicelebratedhis birthdayon 29 Marchwith the dele-gates at theStakeholderconference atthe GallagherEstate inMidrand, Jo-hannesburg.

Happy Birthday