"I worked for agent RS452." This was a discovery advocate Glenn Goosen made as his former boss Vanessa Brereton confessed that she was an apartheid agent.

Goosen was the second witness called by leader of the evidence Kessie Naidu SC at the Hefer Commission on Thursday.

The commission was set up in September after news reports that the National Director of Public Prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka was investigated for being an apartheid spy.

The terms of reference for the commission were later extended to include a probe into the possible abuse of the national directorate of public prosecutions by Ngcuka or Justice Minister Penuell Maduna "due to obligations to the apartheid government".

Goosen practised as an advocate at the Port Elizabeth Bar. He told the commission he had become involved in student politics while he studied law at the University of Cape Town.

In 1989, he moved to Port Elizabeth and began working as an articled clerk at Brereton's law firm. He told the commission she had done mainly public interest and human rights related work.

Most of the firm's clients had been faced with unrest related charges, Goosen said.

He said he had not met Ngcuka before 1990. He told the commission that he had attended a meeting during which activists reported back on a conference by African National Congress leaders in Lusaka.

According to Goosen, there were 10 people including himself at the meeting.

Brereton was there but Ngcuka was not. Naidoo then said: "If someone had to report to the security police on the meeting, that person had to be there or an inquisitive police officer must have listened in."

Goosen said shortly after that meeting, the houses of those present had been raided. Security agent Gideon Niewoudt had raided Goosen's house.

He told the commission he had been told by Brereton that her house had not been searched but that she had accompanied the police to the law offices where Goosen's office was searched and a file with documents and photographs relating to the meeting were seized.

Naidu told the commission on Thursday that the two main accusers, Mo Shaik and Mac Maharaj, had briefed a new firm of attorneys to represent them. Nobody from that firm was at the hearing on Thursday morning.

Naidu said Shaik and Maharaj could not attend because they were busy preparing their statements.

With acknowledgements to Estelle Ellis and the Cape Argus.