Former Public Protector of South Africa, advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, expressed shock when the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) declined to prosecute African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Fikile Mbalula on allegations of money laundering.
“It was shocking to discover that the National Prosecuting Authority decided not to prosecute because there was evidence which we relied on as the Public Protector that Mr Mbalula received that free donation which he later turned into a loan.
“That was also paid in cash, and we were questioning the R150,000 cash which he paid to a travel agent. He was alleging that he is paying back R680,000 which he got from Sedgars, the company which paid for his family trip.
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“I think that violated the financial intelligence laws because as a South African, there is an amount of cash which you are allowed to be carrying around. We wanted them to look into that part, but then they decided not to prosecute,” Mkhwebane said.
The controversy centres around a family holiday to Dubai, funded by Sedgars Sports, a popular sports clothing manufacturer owned by the Dockrat family, when Mbalula was the Minister of Sports in 2016.
The NPA’s decision not to prosecute Mbalula has raised eyebrows. Mkhwebane, who is now an EFF Member of Parliament, highlighted key points that led to her concern. According to her, Mbalula received a free donation from Sedgars Sports, which he later turned into a loan.
The transaction involved substantial cash, including a puzzling R150,000 payment to a travel agent. Mbalula claimed that he was repaying R680,000, which he received from Sedgars for the family trip to Dubai.
Last year, the NPA initiated an investigation based on Mkhwebane’s report, which suggested that Sedgars Sports funded the Mbalula family’s Dubai holiday. The focus was on whether the trip’s funding constituted proceeds of money laundering.
However, after thorough police investigations and collaboration with prosecutors, the NPA concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support criminal allegations. Consequently, they declined to prosecute anyone involved in the matter.
Despite the NPA’s decision, AfriForum’s private prosecution unit remains convinced that Mbalula has a case to answer.
In a significant step toward privately prosecuting him, AfriForum obtained the police docket related to the Dubai trip through a Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) application.
The unit alleges irregularities in the investigation, including collusion between witnesses and the SAPS, failure to obtain statements from key witnesses, and poor cooperation between law enforcement and prosecutors.
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