LISTEN | Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s urgent bid to block arrest fails

The Pretoria high court has struck off the roll National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula's urgent application to interdict law enforcement authorities from arresting her.

Mapisa-Nqakula turned to the court to challenge how the search and seizure warrant by the Investigating Directorate was obtained and the recent operation itself at her Johannesburg home. 

She also sought an order compelling the state to disclose the evidence against her.

In her ruling judge Sulet Potterill said the matter was not urgent and ordered her to pay the costs of the application.

She said: “Accordingly, the application is struck from the roll. The applicant is to pay the costs, including the costs of two counsel.”

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The court looked at her arguments: that she has a standing in society; the alleged unlawfulness of the pending arrest and prosecution and; that her constitutional right to dignity and freedom of movement would be infringed.

Dealing with this, Potterill cited that the ID confirmed it would not oppose bail in the matter.

“Arrest without detention simply is not urgent. It is most certainly not within the power of this court to instruct the minister and his officials to summons the applicant vs to arrest her. There is in any way no such prayer sought in the application before me.

“I cannot find, firstly because there are no grounds set out as to why this should be done except [to affect the] applicant's standing in society and dignity. The National Director of Public Prosecutions has stated under oath her attorney can take her to the Lyttleton police station and to court. This is already a courtesy and an exception to what ordinary citizens are afforded.

“There's not a single fact set out as to why the future arrest would be unlawful, seemingly because there is a weak case made out. Yet the applicant does not know what case has been set out and this is pure speculation. I can make no finding on such speculation,” Potterill said.

The judge also took exception to the time frames set out by the speaker in the urgent matter, saying these were “unreasonable, not only to the respondents but to the court”.

She agreed with the ID's assertion that it would not be “competent” for the court to interdict an arrest, saying if the court granted this “the floodgates will be open”.

“Every suspect will be in a position to approach the court on an urgent basis, setting out on speculation there is a weak case against them and [seeking to] interdict an arrest.”

Last month the ID conducted a search and seizure operation at Mapisa-Nqakula's home in Bruma, Johannesburg. The operation is linked to the investigation into alleged corruption that reportedly took place during Mapisa-Nqakula's tenure as minister of defence and military veterans.

The Sunday Times reported last month that the ID was investigating the speaker in connection with allegations that she was paid millions in cash bribes by a defence force contractor.

The investigation found she allegedly received R2.3m in cash delivered in gift bags by defence businesswoman Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, who is married to a general in the military health service. 

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