With immediate effect, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the controversial and corrupt Speaker of Parliament, has chosen to take a “special leave” from her role as speaker.
It is reported that Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the speaker of the National Assembly, will be detained on Friday. Upon her apprehension, she will face charges of corruption and money laundering amounting to over R4 million.
Mapisa-Nqakula allegedly solicited and received “gratification” from one businessman throughout her nine-year term as the minister of defense and military veterans, according to several top investigators and a government source who spoke with the local media outlet the Mail & Guardian.
Plans for the speaker’s arrest, according to two people familiar with the investigation, started roughly three weeks ago while she was in Paris, France for the 2024 Women Speakers’ Summit on March 6 and 7.
Her arrest was anticipated on Friday, a top government official stated. According to the official, Mapisa-Nqakula would have been taken into custody on Thursday if it hadn’t been a public holiday.
She will face charges of money laundering and corruption after accepting more than R4 million from a businessman, according to a draft charge sheet that has been created.
According to an unidentified source, “She has consented to turn herself in to the Pretoria police, where she will be detained and brought before the magistrate’s court to face charges.”
The speaker’s anticipated arrest comes after a directorate-approved raid on her Johannesburg home on Monday. NewsO’Clock Home|| Breaking News Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula embroiled in bribery scandal: “I gave minister bags of money.” Farai Diza3 March 2024, 5:29 a.m.
As a result of claims that she accepted financial bribes of millions of rands from a South African National Defence Force (SANDF) contractor while serving as the defense minister, Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula is presently under investigation. According to the allegations, Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, a general’s wife in the SANDF’s military health department, quietly transported up to R2.3 million in cash to her.
The six-month-long probe, which has been kept under wraps inside the Investigating Directorate (ID), is said to have gathered testimony linking Mapisa-Nqakula to the purported bribery scheme.
In a sworn testimony, Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu described how, on several occasions between November 2016 and July 2019, she gave cash to Mapisa-Nqakula, referring to the money with coded terminology like “wigs,” “impepho” (incense), “imithi” (medication), and “snuff”.
Chief Investigator Andrea Johnson declined to comment on the investigation’s specifics but acknowledged that the directorate does not provide information about investigations that are still in progress.
When asked about the probe, Mapisa-Nqakula said she was unaware of it but that she would be willing to assist if asked or charged.
“If you’re claiming that I’m under investigation, I anticipate that the directorate will question me and that I’ll be brought before the court if there are charges against me. “And then I will express my own opinions,” said Mapisa-Nqakula. “However, I have met and am familiar with Nombasa.”
Investigations into possible wrongdoing have exposed allegations of unlawful activity that have damaged the reputations of those involved, leading to grave worries about corruption in the defense industry. How she was connected to the inquiry Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula embroiled in bribery scandal: “I gave minister bags of money.”
A South African National Defence Force (SANDF) contractor allegedly offered Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula cash bribes totaling millions of rands during her time as defense minister. As a result, she has been the subject of an investigation. According to the allegations, Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, a general’s wife in the SANDF’s military health department, quietly transported up to R2.3 million in cash to her.
According to reports, the months-long investigation—which was kept under wraps inside the Investigating Directorate (ID)—gathered testimony linking Mapisa-Nqakula to the purported bribery plot.
