The man who accused Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane of bribery has pulled in revered senior legal mind Dali Mpofu to represent him in his trial.
This was revealed during Phadima Fukula’s brief appearance in the East London regional court on Friday by his attorney, Lindela Ngxekana.
Ngxekana confirmed they had engaged advocate Mpofu and he had accepted the brief to represent Fukula.
Mpofu has represented clients in high-profile cases including striking mineworkers during the Marikana Commission, former Sars commissioner Tom Moyane during the Zondo Commission, former public protector advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane at the section 194 inquiry and former president Jacob Zuma in his corruption case.
Ngxekana said Mpofu had indicated he would be available after November 20.
Fukula, who remains out on warning, accused Mabuyane of bribing former deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo with R5m.
Fukula faces charges of perjury and crimen injuria.
The Dispatch reported that on April 9 2021, Hawks detectives in East London had questioned Fukula, requesting evidence to substantiate his claims against Mabuyane.
During the interview, Fukula is alleged to have asked for a short break and never returned.
Subsequently, the Hawks, after realising his statements were conflicting, opened a case of perjury, and a month later, on May 3 2021, Mabuyane opened a case of crimen injuria against Fukula.
Fukula was arrested by the Hawks in Johannesburg in February 2022 after it was discovered he had allegedly lied under oath by implicating Zondo and Mabuyane in the bribery matter.
He appeared in court without being charged after it was found that his case was not on the roll.
The Hawks made a call to the public in 2024 to help locate Fukula.
Fukula subsequently presented himself in court on August 29.
In a statement to the Hawks in East London on February 17 2021, Fukula alleged Mabuyane had given him R10,000 in March 2016 to influence branches of the ANC against Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who was to contest against Cyril Ramaphosa at the party’s 54th national conference at Nasrec in December 2017.
In another statement, Fukula, an ANC activist, claimed that in July 2017, Mabuyane had handed him “a bag full of cash” to take to Zondo.
Ngxekana said he and prosecutor advocate Louis Sinclair had agreed for a pretrial conference to be held on December 3 in the specialised commercial crimes court.
The Dispatch reported in 2023 that Mabuyane said he wanted Fukula to reveal in court who his “handlers” were.
At the time, Mabuyane said he viewed Fukula’s claims as part of an orchestrated campaign to damage his name, adding that justice would be served for him the day Fukula told a public court who had made him come up with the allegations against him.
“I need to know who his [alleged] handlers are because this sort of a campaign to tarnish my name has been going on since I was appointed as premier [in 2019],” he said at the time.
Fukula, who told the Dispatch three months ago he had joined Zuma’s MK party, will be back in court on December 3.
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