The Gauteng High Court on Tuesday dismissed application by Democracy in Action to block the handover to President Cyril Ramaphosa of the first instalment of the report on an inquiry on high-level corruption.
The group had approached the court for an order blocking Tuesday’s handover by acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo of the first part of the report of the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, which he chaired.
In its court application, the group had argued that Ramaphosa was unqualified to receive the document because some witnesses implicated him during the sitting of the commission, which probed allegations of corruption involving senior government and ruling African National Congress officials during the 10-year tenure of former president Jacob Zuma.
Judge Avrielle Maier-Frawley questioned the timing of the group’s decision to approach the court at the last minute for the hearing “to argue the urgency of the matter” on Tuesday.
Maier-Frawley noted that Democracy in Action only went to the high court on Monday with the intention of blocking Zondo from handing over the report to Ramaphosa on the grounds that the latter had been “implicated” by witnesses at the inquiry and was not best-suited to receive the dossier.
“From January 2021, the applicant formed the view the president has been implicated and would not be the right person to receive the report,” the judge said.
He added: “But they sought no legal recourse and waited a year to bring proceedings on the eve of the ceremonial handover of the report. Why the delay?”
Lawyer Sizo Dlali, who represented Democracy in Action, argued that his clients tried to engage with the commission to raise their objections but received no response.
“The delay in instituting proceedings should not be seen as self-created urgency. The applicant tried to engage with the first and second respondents numerous times and received no joy,” he said.
Representing the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, lawyer Tembeka Ngcukaitobi labelled the case by Democracy in Action as a “reckless and frivolous challenge.”
“This is a self-created urgency and the case should be struck off from the roll with costs,” Ngcukaitobi said.
Lawyer Timothy Bruinders, acting on behalf of the president and deputy president David Mabuza, also asked “the court to strike the case from its roll as it lacked urgency.”
The president was in possession of an electronic copy of the report. However, a ceremonial handover was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, when the president would be handed a hard copy of the first report of the inquiry’s three-part findings.
The matter was struck from the roll with costs.
NM/jn/APA