Publication: Business Day Issued: Date: 2006-12-13 Reporter: Edward West Reporter:

Court Still to Rule on Bid for Zuma Papers

 

Publication 

Business Day
Date 2006-12-13

Reporter

 Edward West

Web Link

www.businessday.co.za

 

DURBAN ­ The National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA’s) request for documents from Mauritius detailing meetings of Jacob Zuma and French arms manufacturer Thint will be argued in the Pietermaritzburg High Court next year.

The NPA has applied for a court-sanctioned letter of request to the Mauritius attorney-general for the documents to be released. A Durban High Court judge heard the matter in chambers yesterday.

Zuma’s and Thint’s legal counsel are opposing the request, and have been given until February 9 to file papers, while the state would respond by March 2, the NPA said. The court has set aside March 22 to 23 for arguments.

The documents include the 2000 diary of former Thint director Alain Thethard (sic), which is said to contain details of an alleged meeting attended by Zuma, Thethard and Shabir Shaik *1.

Shaik was convicted of fraud and two counts of corruption in July last year. He went to jail last month after the Supreme Court of Appeal upheld the judgment.

Judge Herbert Msimang struck the case against Zuma and Thint off the roll in September after the state had applied a postponement, pending the outcome of the Shaik appeal and a challenge to search and seizure operations at the homes and businesses of Zuma, his attorneys and Thint.

The outstanding documents were also at the time presented to the court as a reason for the postponement of the case.

Last week, Directorate of Special Operations special investigator Isak du Plooy said in an affidavit there was “a reasonable prospect” of corruption charges being reinstated against Zuma and Thint. But the NPA said it had not yet taken a decision on the matter.

NPA prosecutor Anton Steynberg has described the diary as “certainly an important piece of evidence *2”.

With acknowledgements to Edward West and Business Day.


*1       The meeting is no longer simply "alleged"; Shabir Shaik admitted under oath that it occurred, but during the late afternoon of Friday 10 March 2000 and not mid-morning on Saturday 11 March as indicated by the diary. A copy of the relevant page of the diary was admitted as evidence in court on agreement between the parties.


*2      It's certainly not the only important piece of evidence.

What about all those other juicy encrypted faxes and Secrete documents?


It's no wonder Thales are so desperate to prevent the NPA from getting hold of the originals.

But they do have copies certified as true by the Mauritian authorities; viz :
"26.4           Immediately after the searches and seizures in Mauritius two members of the DSO who were present at the police headquarters there, namely Downer and an investigator Carla Da Silva-Nel, identified the relevant documents from among those seized, which were then copied, certified as true copies and sealed in envelopes.  Downer and Da Silva-Nel brought the copies back to South Africa with them on 11 October 2001. *3"
It's going to be a long shot for Thint to prevent these items of evidence from being admitted against them in court - that is if they ever get to court.

Thint's answering affidavits on this issue will be very, very interesting.


*3      Thint claim that Adv Downer and Investigator da Silva-Nel were very, very naughty in doing this. Downer claims otherwise.

I believe Adv Downer - because he never lies - unlike Thint's employees.