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Ndebele skips court citing cost issues

HOT WATER: Former transport minister Sbu Ndebele is said to have been recalled from his post as South Africa's High Commissioner to Australia following charges of corruption against him Photo: DANIEL BORN
HOT WATER: Former transport minister Sbu Ndebele is said to have been recalled from his post as South Africa's High Commissioner to Australia following charges of corruption against him Photo: DANIEL BORN

Former transport minister Sbu Ndebele is set to miss the next court proceeding of his fraud and money laundering case, again.

He is accused number one in this case. His co-accused, George Mahlalela, Zakhele Thwala, Tebogo Mphuti and Justine Ncube appeared without him at the Pretoria Commercial Court yesterday.

During their hearing in July, when Ndebele was also in the dock, his lawyer, Jerome Brauns SC, asked for his client to be excused from yesterday's appearance.

Brauns argued it would be unnecessarily too costly for Ndebele to travel from Australia, where he is currently South Africa's ambassador, for yesterday's appearance.

State Prosecutor Peter Serunye yesterday said: "All the accused are before the court, except accused number one. As it was indicated during the last occasion, he's serving the country in Australia."

The accused were expecting to get the date for when their trial would resume at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.

They, however, have to return to the Pretoria Commercial Court on December 1 to hear the date. The high court would only decide its new court roll in November.

Brauns yesterday, again, asked Magistrate Nicca Setshogoe to excuse Ndebele on December 1.

"A scenario might happen that on that day, the 1st of December, he might not attend . he's hoping that on that day he be excused as well."

Serunye did not object to this request, leaving Setshogoe to accept it as well.

Each of the accused were granted bail of R10 000 after their arrests in December.

Ndebele allegedly accepted a bribe of R10-million while still transport minister in 2010 from Tasima, a company that is managing the National Traffic Information System (eNaTIS), for illegal extension of its more than R2-billion contract.

Mahlalela, Ndebele's former director general, is accused number two and former deputy director general, Thwala, is the third accused in the case.

Tebogo Mphuti and Justine Ncube, completing the number of individuals charged in the case, are executives of companies accused of involvement in the payment of the alleged bribe to Ndebele.

Their charge sheet states that the R10-million was paid in tranches between October 11 2010 to September 21 2012 into Ndebele's Investec bank account.

nkosib@sowetan.co.za

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