Simon Nare
When the Nkabinde Inquiry sits on Monday, evidence leaders are expected to apply for the hearings to be postponed to 17 February.
In a statement issued late on Sunday night, the secretariat said the postponement application will be brought “in order to finalise preparations for forthcoming witnesses and to ensure the orderly and uninterrupted continuation of the [i]nquiry’s proceedings”.
The inquiry will also hear an opposing application by the legal team for suspended South Gauteng DPP Andrew Chauke, led by Advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi.
It is anticipated the team will file a counter-application on the same issue.
The inquiry, chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Bess Nkabinde, is investigating whether Chauke is fit to hold office.
On Friday, the former KwaZulu-Natal director of public prosecutions, Advocate Moipone Noko, concluded her testimony.
During that sitting, she presented further evidence related to the alleged systematic killings linked to the since disbanded Cato Manor police unit, and the role she attributed to the former KwaZulu-Natal Hawks boss, Johan Booysen, in managing the unit’s operations.
Noko was called to the witness stand after then National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Shamila Batohi walked out midway through her testimony in December.
At the time Batohi said that she needed a legal team to represent her independently, separate from the National Prosecuting Authority’s legal team, to avoid a conflict of interest.
Batohi has since been granted permission to appoint the legal team of her choice, but the evidence leaders appear not to be ready to call the next witness.
In its statement, the secretariat said it will apply for the postponement to 17 February.
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