Johnathan Paoli
The National Assembly has confirmed that the Johannesburg residence of Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula was searched by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on Tuesday morning.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Parliament said the Speaker steadfastly upholds her strong conviction of innocence and that she fully cooperated with a five-hour-long search of her home.
The statement confirmed that the raid was linked to reports of corruption, with Mapisa-Nqakula being alleged to have benefited in tender kickbacks of over R2 million during her tenure as defence minister.
It said Tuesday morning’s events were also the reason why Mapisa-Nqakula was not presiding over the president’s question time currently underway in the House with the speaker having previously been out of the country.
This follows claims being brought to Parliament’s joint standing committee on defence two years ago, however an investigation was never carried out due to the anonymity of the source.
Mapisa-Nqakula is believed to be implicated in an affidavit for immunity by the defence contractor in question.
The legislature said she was profoundly disturbed by the allegations, which go against what she represents.
Pressure has been mounting on the speaker to step down following the raid with DA chief whip Siviwe Gwarube saying the seriousness of the allegations raised significant doubt about her ability to fulfill the role and to uphold the integrity of the institution.
The DA and EFF have both lodged ethics complaints against Mapisa-Nqakula and although the committee dealing with the matter met, as is customary, behind closed doors, it’s unlikely there will be swift action on the matter.
The DA chief whip said that contrary to what the speaker had previously indicated about not being aware of the investigation, it was clear that evidence of some kind of wrongdoing was present and with the allegations having taken root, there was enough evidence for the NPA to conduct a raid.
Gwarube said the Speaker should do the right thing by stepping down and allow the ethics committee to handle the matter.
“Even the rules of Parliament indicate that the person who is the Speaker needs to be somebody who upholds the decorum and the dignity and also make sure that the institution is not eroded in terms of public trust,” she said.
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