Jali investigation hits a snag
2004-05-05 15:39
Pretoria - The refusal of a senior correctional services officer to appear before the Jali Commission of inquiry has weakened commission's investigation, said investigator Bright Shabalala on Wednesday.
He was responding to a decision by Winson Naidoo, senior correctional services officer at Pretoria Central Prison, to ignore a subpoena to testify.
The Jali Commission of Inquiry into prison corruption and maladministration was looking into the abuse of overtime payments by correctional services staff.
The court heard on Tuesday that correctional services had spent R1.4bn over two financial years on weekend overtime because of non-adherence to policy.
It's alleged that Naidoo requested a "large sum of money" and a severance package in exchange for his testimony.
"I think he saw the commission as a bargaining tool but the commission can't help him," Shabalala said.
Naidoo, who now faces a possible fine of R300 or three months in prison, was responsible for supplying the commission with information on irregularities within the Correctional Services.
"He was to testify about individuals not policy issues," Shabalala said.
- SAPA