Mapisa-Nqakula Trial: Defence Challenges State Witness Over Coded 'Sangoma' Language Claims
- The defence questioned State witness Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu over details missing from her initial police statements
- Advocate Siyabulela Mapoma SC probed an alleged R200 000 cash payment and referenced a separate armed robbery docket
- Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu said a key detail was omitted from her earlier statement because she was injured when it was written
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PRETORIA — The defence team representing former Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula mounted a pointed challenge to the State's key witness during cross-examination at the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday.
According to News24, Advocate Siyabulela Mapoma SC, acting for Mapisa-Nqakula, took aim at the credibility of Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, whose testimony forms a central pillar of the prosecution's case. Mapisa-Nqakula faces 12 counts of corruption and one count of money laundering, to which she has pleaded not guilty.
Sangoma language claims under scrutiny
Mapoma pressed Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu on her claim that she and Mapisa-Nqakula had agreed to use coded "sangoma" language when discussing cash requests, pointing out that this arrangement was nowhere to be found in her original formal statements to the police. Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu conceded the omission but argued that its absence did not mean the agreement had not occurred.
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She explained that she had expected to provide the fuller account of events only once she testified in court. She had earlier testified that she gave her a R300,000 loan after she received a South African National Defence Force (SANDF).
R200 000 payment and statement inconsistencies
The defence also probed an alleged R200 000 cash payment, using a police docket from a separate armed robbery case to raise questions about inconsistencies surrounding how the money was reportedly withdrawn and transported. Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu pushed back against the contents of her earlier police statement, telling the court it had been compiled on her behalf while she was recovering from an injury.
She said the document was never read back to her before she signed it, which she offered as an explanation for the discrepancies between that statement and her current testimony. Mapoma disputed this account, arguing that the gaps in her earlier version of events undermined her reliability as a witness. The trial continues.
Source: Getty Images
ANC MPs ordered to reject Phala Phala report: Mapisa-Nqakula
In a related article, Briefly News reported on Mapisa-Nqakula's recent remarks concerning the African National Congress's handling of the Phala Phala report. The former Speaker's admission of shame and her claims of party directives have ignited extensive discussions on social media regarding the sincerity of her statements amid personal legal challenges.
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Source: Briefly News
