CORRUPTION TRIAL : Ex-defence minister Mapisa-Nqakula grilled over tenders, millions and a wig

Former defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula was cross-examined in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Thursday about the timeline of a R79m contract awarded to the woman who claimed to have paid her millions in bribes.

Former defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has denied influencing the awarding of a R79-million defence tender to businesswoman Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu after her company’s original R104-million contract was cancelled.

Mapisa-Nqakula, who has pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of corruption and one of money laundering, was cross-examined in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Thursday, 17 September, about her relationship with Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, the sole director of the company Umkhombe Marine.

The State alleges that Mapisa-Nqakula solicited and received about R4.5-million from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu between December 2016 and July 2019 while serving as defence minister. She later became the Speaker of the National Assembly.

Much of Thursday’s cross-examination focused on the tender, with Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac) prosecutor advocate Emile van der Merwe questioning Mapisa-Nqakula about what happened after Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu’s original contract was cancelled and how she was given a replacement deal.

In 2016, Umkhombe Marine was awarded a R104-million defence logistics contract. The contract was cancelled days later, after preliminary work had already begun. Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu testified that she was subsequently offered a R79-million “replacement” tender, which she had neither bid nor applied for.

Van der Merwe put the sequence to Mapisa-Nqakula: Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu’s tender was cancelled, she contacted the minister, Mapisa-Nqakula raised the matter with senior defence officials, and the businesswoman received the replacement contract.

Mapisa-Nqakula said she met with senior officials after Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu phoned her and complained about the “abuse” she had received from the SA National Defence Force (SANDF). She instructed the officials to contact Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu and investigate the alleged abuse, but denied that she had influenced the awarding of the replacement tender, saying she did not sit on procurement committees.

The prosecutor then asked Mapisa-Nqakula how often she had met contractors privately while serving as defence minister. Mapisa-Nqakula said she generally interacted with contractors at official events, such as when she was invited to address them or launch a programme.

“The only exception was Nombasa of Umkhombe Marine?” asked Van der Merwe.

Mapisa-Nqakula confirmed that Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu was the only contractor with whom she had private meetings. This was because, “I did not relate with Nombasa as a contractor.”

She explained that she had related to Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu on a personal level as they were both traditional healers.

Van der Merwe said there had indeed been a relationship between the two – “a relationship concerning R4.5-million”.

Mapisa-Nqakula was also questioned about the allegation that Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu concealed R300,000 beneath a wig and handed it to her at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport.