NPA denies sexual assault claim against former head

Cape Town - The intrigue at the National Prosecuting Authority has become even more convoluted after it received a summons in a civil suit for R7.5m.

"We dismiss those assertions with absolute contempt. The NPA is not preparing any criminal case against the former NDPP Mr Mxolisi Nxasana," NPA spokesperson Luvuyo Mfako said on Monday (see City Press report).

"There is no NPA employee who has accused the former NDPP of sexual harassment."

He dismissed a report that the person making the claim was a personal assistant of Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions Nomgcobo Jiba. He confirmed the NPA had received a summons, but would not go into details.

The City Press had reported that the summons was against the NPA for shock, pain, suffering and contumelia (disrespect that causes offence).

Nxasana took a R17m settlement to walk away last year, while only 22 months into a 10-year contract.

He also avoided an inquiry to determine whether he was fit for office. The inquiry was ordered by President Jacob Zuma and he was supposed to have defended allegations that included not disclosing that he had been acquitted of murder in 1985.

The inquiry was abandoned on the morning it was due to start, on instruction from the Presidency.

Mfaku said the claims in the report - that a criminal case was being prepared against Nxasana for touching an NPA colleague's leg - were for police to comment on.

Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said as far as he knew there was no such investigation against Nxasana.

He told Talk Radio 702 on Monday morning that the claims were untrue and "laughable".
Before Nxasana left in June 2015, there were rumours that he was being investigated for allegedly delaying the investigation into the illegal arrest and deportation of five Zimbabweans wanted for the murder of a policeman.

Hawks head Anwa Dramat was implicated in this, and was suspended. He later resigned.

However, Independent Police Investigative Directorate head Robert McBride, who was accused of doctoring a report on the allegations, in order to clear Dramat, was put through a disciplinary inquiry, as was Gauteng Hawks head Shadrack Sibiya.

Sibiya was fired. McBride won a court application in which he argued that Police Minister Nathi Nhleko was wrong in suspending him and holding a disciplinary inquiry. The Constitutional Court had to ratify that before it could be applied.

Last week, the NPA formally charged Dramat, Sibiya, and senior Hawks official Lesley Maluleke with kidnapping, defeating the ends of justice, and illegal deportation.

Nxasana questioned why the allegations against him had not been raised when he still worked at the NPA.

Responding to a question on whether he thought it was related to speculation that he was going to reinstate Zuma's corruption charges, he said he had never handled the Zuma matter.

It was allocated to advocate Willie Hofmeyr and Jiba.

"I never even looked at the docket myself," he told the broadcaster.

The Democratic Alliance had asked the Western Cape High Court to order Zuma to suspend Jiba. 

It was basing its case on previous judgments that found she was not truthful in the case against KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head Johan Booysen, and delayed that case.

She had faced charges of fraud and perjury, but these were withdrawn after new NDPP Shaun Abrahams succeeded Nxasana and she was promoted.

This article first appeared on News24 – see here.