Nkabinde inquiry rejects NPA’s bid to lead its own questioning

The Nkabinde inquiry has rejected the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) bid to lead its own questioning during proceedings.

The ruling was handed down during proceedings on Tuesday.

The NPA sought to adjust the Nkabinde inquiry rules by leading evidence and cross-examining witnesses itself, rather than working through the evidence leaders appointed under the presidential proclamation.

If the application had been granted, it would have created two parallel lines of questioning in proceedings examining the collapse of the Cato Manor racketeering case and the conduct of suspended Gauteng director of public prosecutions Andrew Chauke.

Ruling

However, retired Constitutional Court Judge and chairperson of the inquiry, Justice Bess Nkabinde, dismissed the request.

“The NPA’s interests are adequately represented in the enquiry; the evidence leaders are independent and should be neutral,” Nkabinde said.

“Their independence on neutrality, as Advocate [Tembeka] Ngcukaitobi pointed out, does not preclude them, the evidence leaders, from presenting all relevant information to the inquiry, whether favourable to advocate Chauke or not.

“This view is consistent with an inquisitorial nature of the inquiry proceedings. The application lacks merit and should be dismissed. Order, accordingly, the application is dismissed,” Nkabinde ruled.

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Warning

Ngcukaitobi warned that granting the application could create inequality and confusion as witnesses would face inconsistent questioning frameworks.

“The subtext of this application is that the evidence leaders are unable to perform their functions adequately. That is a serious allegation, and it has not been established on the papers,” Ngcukaitobi submitted.

Garth Hurley, arguing for the NPA, rejected the suggestion that their application impugned the competence of evidence leaders.

Nkabinde inquiry

The Nkabinde inquiry is looking into Gauteng director of public prosecutions Andrew Chauke’s fitness to hold office.

 It was set up by President Cyril Ramaphosa after National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Advocate Shamila Batohi referred Chauke’s case to him, alleging that the Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions had protected high-profile people and made politically motivated prosecution decisions.

Batohi reportedly questioned Chauke on his apparent initial reluctance to prosecute former president Jacob Zuma’s son, Duduzane Zuma, for culpable homicide despite a magistrate having found there was prima facie evidence that Duduzane may have been negligent when losing control of his Porsche and crashing into a taxi in 2014.

 A Zimbabwean woman died, and three people were left injured.

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Batohi

In December last year, Batohi left the Nkabinde inquiry in limbo when she refused to continue with her testimony until she had consulted with her legal team.

Nkabinde then ordered Batohi to return after being told she had not sought permission to halt her testimony.

Batohi admitted she had not sought permission, but said she did not want to continue without first getting legal counsel.

“I decided, chairperson, that I was not going to come back, pending getting proper legal counsel,” she said. “I wasn’t seeking permission. That I decided I needed to do, because it is about me and my integrity.”

Nkabinde, however, accused Batohi of being disrespectful.

Chauke

Ramaphosa suspended Chauke, with effect from 20 July 2025, on full pay pending the finalisation of the inquiry.

In July, Ramaphosa said he believed Chauke’s “continued tenure as director of public prosecutions – while facing serious accusations – would negatively affect the reputation of the NPA as a whole”.

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