The High Court in Pretoria has dismissed former National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s application to be discharged, clearing the way for her corruption trial to continue.
Judge Mashudu Munzhelele ruled that the prosecution had presented enough evidence for Mapisa-Nqakula to be called on to answer the case against her.
The ruling does not amount to a conviction. It means the court found that the case should continue rather than ending at the close of the prosecution’s evidence.
Mapisa-Nqakula is accused of soliciting and accepting bribes from a military contractor while she was defence minister between 2016 and 2019.
The State alleges that she solicited or received payments totalling R4.5 million in connection with military transport tenders. The allegations remain before the court and have not been proved.
Mapisa-Nqakula applied for a discharge under section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act. That provision allows an accused person to seek an acquittal after the State closes its case if there is no evidence on which a reasonable court could convict.
In dismissing the application, Munzhelele found that the evidential threshold for the trial to proceed had been met.
The matter will now move to the defence stage, where Mapisa-Nqakula will have an opportunity to respond to the State’s case. She remains presumed innocent unless and until convicted by a court.
