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'No concerns' about Zuma raid
03/07/2008 18:30 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Neither the presidency nor the justice ministry raised concerns about security clearance before the raids on the offices Jacob Zuma occupied while he was deputy president, said suspended prosecutions boss Vusi Pikoli on Thursday.
"There were no objections to the searches. There were no reservations to the searches," he said in Johannesburg at the Ginwala commission of inquiry into his fitness to hold the office of National Director of Public Prosecutions.
He explained that once the Directorate of Special Operations had secured the warrants, he told President Thabo Mbeki, Justice Minister Brigitte Mabandla and deputy-president Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka and no one raised any concerns.
Only Frank Chikane, director in the presidency, said the search at Tuynhuys in Cape Town might be a problem because Parliament was in recess and there might not be someone there to assist.
Earlier in the inquiry, National Intelligence Agency director-general Manala Manzini said that only three of the nine DSO operatives involved in the operation had had the security clearance to be in an environment containing classified documents.
Should not use firearms
He said that the company contracted to perform the computer searches had not been vetted.
Pikoli said that on the day of the searches he told those carrying them out of the potential for a clash between themselves and Zuma's bodyguards and that they should avoid a "miniwar" and not use firearms.
About 18:00 on the night of the searches, National Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi phoned him to say that his men had been there the whole day and that he must call off the searches, to which he objected.
Pikoli said: "It is none of his business to be ordering me to pull off my men when they were executing a lawful warrant of search."
The validity of these warrants still form part of an outstanding Constitutional Court judgment related to Zuma's forthcorming corruption trial. In that application, his lawyers argued that the terms of the warrant were too broad.
He said Mabandla later called him to express concern about the searches, but he did not understand this as he had told her about the warrants before they were executed.
Turn-around time slow
He told the inquiry that in 2006 a decision was taken for the NIA to handle their security vetting as the NPA's security and risk management could not deal with the requests.
In terms of relations between his office and that of justice director-general, Menzi Simelane, he had been frustrated that the turn-around time of communiques between himself (Pikoli) and the justice minister was slow, with Simelane often adding notes at the bottom on points for her to consider which would delay their work.
He said all the joint meetings between the executives of both departments were cancelled by the justice ministry throughout 2006 and they had managed to revive them in 2007.
Pikoli also had objected to having to take instructions from the directors-general from other departments that sat on a task team which handled post-Truth and Reconciliation Commission prosecutions.
Told to be more civil
"It is unconstitutional to take a decision to prosecute in committee. It is still the prerogative of the NPA and was entrusted to the NDPP," he said.
When told of the Rev Chikane's unhappiness at the way he was being treated by prosecutor Anton Ackermann, he said he spoke to Ackermann and told him to be more civil and cordial.
Pikoli was suspended on September 23 last year. President Mbeki said the suspension was because of a breakdown in relations between Pikoli and Mabandla.
Pikoli believes it is because of his corruption investigation against Selebi.
- SAPA
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