A senior SANDF general claims he is innocent of charges of flouting protocol in handling an application by disgraced former defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula for the state’s legal assistance in her corruption trial relating to her time in that position.
Adjutant-general of the army Maj-Gen Eric Mnisi said his processing of the request made in a letter addressed to him on April 1 by Mapisa-Nqakula (now also former Speaker of the National Assembly), was in line with internal processes.
An unhappy defence minister Thandi Modise on Friday ordered an investigation into Mnisi’s handling of the request, which allegedly did not adhere to departmental protocol.
The source of Modise’s unhappiness is that Mnisi, who several senior government officials described as close to Mapisa-Nqakula, only informed her office, the secretary of defence, as well as the chief of the defence force, of the request the day after he had referred it to the state attorney for advice and consideration.
Mnisi said: “In the normal course of business, after we receive a request, I take advice from the state attorney. When they say yes or no, I then go to them [the chief of the defence force, the secretary of defence, and the minister of defence],” he said, adding that the decision in normal cases lay with him and not the secretary of defence.
But, because this request involved a former minister his intention was to, after receiving advice, escalate the matter to the secretary of defence and the minister for a decision. “There is no way that I can do something with that much political implication without informing my principal. It’s not the way that we do business,” Mnisi told the Sunday Times.
The investigation by secretary of defence, Thobekile Gamede, will clarify whether Mnisi is empowered to communicate directly with the state attorney, or whether the two communicate via accounting officers.
On Friday, spokesperson for the ministry Amos Phago said Mnisi actioned Mapisa-Nqakula's request by approaching the office of the state attorney before first getting approval from Gamede, the department's accounting officer. Phago said despite Mnisi's action, no assistance had been provided to Mapisa-Nqakula.
Modise said Mnisi's actions was “tantamount to disrespect of executive authority in the department”.
“I have instructed Dr Gamede to look into Gen Mnisi's handling of the matter from an administrative and process point of view as there are protocols that must be followed for such requests,” Modise said.
Modise said she was applying her mind to the request by Mapisa-Nqakula and would “subject it to the prescripts of the law with the view of protecting public funds”.
Earlier this month, Mapisa-Nqakula was released on R50,000 bail by the Pretoria magistrate's court. She is facing 12 counts of corruption and one of money laundering. She is accused of receiving more than R2m in kickbacks for a defence contract when she was defence minister.
Several government insiders have alleged that another complication is that Mnisi and Mapisa-Nqakula are apparently close, which may have influenced his forwarding the request to the state attorney before informing his superiors.
Mnisi dismissed this saying: “The former minister is entitled to apply for legal representation, whether or not it’s approved is a different story. I am not a sympathiser of any president or former president, ours is to advise on the requests,” he said.
“There is no decision as of yet, we are still soliciting legal advice so that at the end of the day our principal can make a decision.”
There is no way that I can do something with that much political implication without informing my principal. It’s not the way that we do business
While the department of justice could not be reached at the time of going to print, a copy of the state legal representation policy, approved by justice minister Ronald Lamola in 2021, states that legal representation shall not be granted in criminal matters where there is an allegation of corruption, among others, as is the case with Mapisa-Nqakula.
Her spokesperson Mike Ramagoma promised to get the former speaker’s attorney, Stephen May to respond to queries by the Sunday Times, but no response was received at the time of going to print.
The Presidency confirmed last month it would not fund Mapisa-Nqakula’s legal fees.
Rise Mzansi’s head of internal democracy, Boitumelo Mpakanyane, wrote to President Cyril Ramaphosa last month seeking assurances that the government nor any other organ of state would pay for Mapisa-Nqakula’s legal fees. “In the spirit of transparency and accountability, it must be placed on record that parliament, and other organs of state, will not foot the legal bills of Ms Mapisa-Nqakula.”
Ramaphosa’s parliamentary counsellor Gerhard Koornhof told Rise Mzansi that neither the president nor the Presidency was responsible for any matter relating to her legal costs. The National Assembly is an independent institution governed by its own rules, said Koornhof.
“As you are aware, there is a separation of powers between the executive and the legislature. Any issue relating to the legal cost of the Speaker must therefore be directed to the National Assembly,” he said.
Rize Mzansi sent a similar letter to head of parliament Xolile George who was unable to respond yet, according to spokesperson Mabine Seabe.
