National director of public prosecutions (NDPP) Shamila Batohi told parliament’s ad hoc committee on criminal justice infiltration that she received intelligence from national commissioner Gen Fannie Masemola and crime intelligence head Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo implicating a member of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in organised crime.
The prosecutor has been suspended and the matter referred to the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac), but Batohi refused to name the individual, citing due process and constitutional protections.
“It’s not fair on the process and it’s not fair on the person concerned,” she said. “I do want to help this house but I don’t want to put people’s names at risk.”
Batohi said the allegations underscored the fragility of SA’s criminal justice institutions and the need for systemic reform. She expressed regret that the NPA had not achieved more in prosecuting state capture cases, despite extensive rebuilding efforts since 2021.
“We have done a lot of work, and I am very pleased at how far we have come with institution building,” she said. “But I would have liked to achieve more in terms of state capture and high-profile corruption cases. That is perhaps the one disappointment in how far we’ve come as the NPA.”
Batohi described the current moment as a critical inflection point for consolidating the rule of law, warning that the vulnerabilities exposed by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s allegations must not be squandered. “Throughout the world, institutions fighting for the rule of law are facing threats and are vulnerable,” she said. “This moment should not be squandered.”
She criticised the Zondo commission for failing to recommend systemic reforms to the criminal justice system. “Sadly, the Zondo commission did not make any recommendations about systemic weaknesses in the criminal justice system. It handed over to a criminal justice system that was weakened during that period.”
Batohi’s refusal to name the prosecutor drew criticism from several MPs, including the EFF’s Julius Malema and MK’s Sibonelo Nomvalo, who accused her of undermining the committee’s work.
Malema said, “She is completely undermining us,” and demanded that Batohi “take her bag and go” if she continued to withhold the name. Nomvalo said the committee needed the name to “take a certain posture” and warned Batohi not to “undermine our intelligence”.
Batohi responded by saying the NPA only names individuals once they have appeared in court and that premature disclosure could violate constitutional rights and compromise investigations. “These things destroy people’s lives,” she said. “We live in a constitutional democracy.”
She confirmed that Idac chief investigator Matthews Sesoko was attacked days after his name was mentioned in committee proceedings.
“I don’t want to protect criminals, of course, but we live in a constitutional democracy,” she said. “People’s rights must be protected.”
DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach and ANC MP Khusela Diko supported the proposal for a closed session, with Breytenbach warning that public disclosure could undermine parallel investigations.
ActionSA MP Dereleen James said that the committee’s purpose was “show and tell” and that other implicated individuals had been named. Batohi reiterated that the intelligence was “flimsy” and may or may not be true.
She said she had met prosecutors across the country to assure them that their commitment must remain to the constitution and the rule of law. “I have always implored prosecutors to take this responsibility seriously. Their work and integrity are important, and they should never compromise that.”
Committee chair Soviet Lekganyane confirmed a closed session would be convened at the end of proceedings for Batohi to disclose the prosecutor’s name.
Malema insisted the committee could not adjourn without it, saying, “We can’t leave the meeting today without that name.”
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