CAPE TOWN - Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said on Tuesday the government was in full flight in the rebuilding processes of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
Delivering his political overview on the ministry’s annual performance plans in Parliament, Lamola said injection of resources should enable the NPA to combat organised crime, white collar crime and corruption.
“We are as much as possible directing critical resources to the NPA to ensure that it has the human capital and financial resources to respond to the many crimes which afflict our communities, despite the challenging fiscal environment we find ourselves in,” he said.
Lamola also said one of the biggest challenges facing the nation was the supply of stable and reliable electricity and the provision of reliable passenger rail transport.
“While the challenges at Eskom and Prasa are well documented, one of the most obvious factors is cable theft.”
The minister said one of the indicators they would be monitoring closely in the NPA’s performance plan was that of cable theft convictions.
“This is an act of economic sabotage – now more than ever, the masterminds of those who benefit from plunging communities into darkness and train stoppages must be exposed and the arm of the law must catch up with them,” he said.
Lamola also said the foundation of the Investigating Directorate was established and the transition from its former head, Hermione Cronje, to Andrea Johnson has been seamless.
He noted that the directorate has declared 82 investigations and enrolled 20 cases with 65 accused.
“It has also prioritised nine corruption matters for enrolment within the next six months.”
Lamola said NPA head Shamila Batohi and her deputy, Anton du Plessis, were nearing a moment of high-level prosecutions being executed without fear or favour.
“We shouldn’t second guess them, they are better placed than all of us to tell no lies and claim no easy victories.”
The minister said the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) was also proving to be a significant agent in the fight against corruption and maladministration. The SIU has to date enrolled cases worth R77 billion in the Special Tribunal and High Court.
“We are now seized with how we strengthen the co-operation between the SIU and other law enforcement agencies such as the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation and NPA, having learnt lessons from the methodology adopted in the Fusion Centre,” he said.
Lamola also said they were mindful of the imminent and the already released Zondo commission reports.
“Special Commercial Crimes Courts have been established in every province and the ones in Palmridge and Pretoria have been expanded to enable them to cope with the work that might come their way.”
He said consultations were under way with internal stakeholders to ensure the review of South Africa’s anti-corruption architecture.
“We also have a team working on the implementation plan of the various findings of Zondo recommendations which fall within scope of their work. This plan will be presented at the appropriate time, to enable us to respond appropriately to the corruption cancer.”
Cape Times