Former Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa Nqakula appears before the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court.
Mmamoloko Kubayi, Minister of Human Settlements, is one of the few senior members of the African National Congress (ANC) and the government to publicly support former Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.
While another former speaker, Baleka Mbete, expressed her support for Mapisa-Nqakula in court, Kubayi stated that they support the former speaker.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) charged Mapisa-Nqakula following a stalemate over her arrest. She was unsuccessful in her bid before the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
Kubayi, who has served in government for several years and chairs the ANC’s economic transformation committee, stated that they support the former speaker.
Wishing you strength mama Nosiviwe as you address the allegations against you,” Kubayi said with a smile.
Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula turns herself in to SAPS at the Lyttelton police station.
Mapisa-Nqakula resigned to protect the ruling party’s reputation, according to the ANC.
What next for Speaker Mapisa-Nqakula? NPA says ‘wheels of justice will now be in motion’
However, United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa stated that Mapisa-Nqakula should have turned herself in to the police a long time ago.
Holomisa blew the whistle on Mapisa-Nqakula several years ago.
“This would not have happened if the UDM had not satisfied itself in 2021 that there was prima facie evidence about allegations that she received several payments totalling over R5 million between 2017 and 2019 from at least one company that had contracts with the South African National Defence Force when she served as Minister of Defence and Military Veterans,” Holomisa said in a press release.
He accused the Joint Standing Committee on Defence of failing to take the matter seriously when he reported it to them.
Since it became known that the NPA’s Investigating Directorate (ID) intended to arrest Mapisa-Nqakula, political parties have been calling for her arrest.
The case concluded in the Supreme Court.