Three of the 11 Mandela funeral scandal accused will hear in November whether charges against them will be withdrawn.
This, after Dr WB Rubusana ANC regional chair Pumlani Mkolo and his two co-accused, businesspeople Nosiphiwo Mati and Zintle Nkuhlu, on Friday submitted written presentations to state prosecuting advocate Diniso Ketani, during a brief East London regional court appearance, on why charges against them should be dropped.
The case will be back at the East London Regional Court on November 29 when the state is expected to motivate why the trio should go to trial or not.
Mkolo, Mati and Nkuhlu on Friday made a brief appearance before magistrate Sadia Jacobs, with their legal team led by Nyameko Diniso, submitting to the state their written reasons as to why they feel the state cannot proceed with the case against them.
The three were part of 11 people arrested early in 2014 for their alleged involvement in the siphoning off of about R6m from Buffalo City Metro coffers with the pretence that it was money meant for memorial service events after former president Nelson Mandela died in December 2013.
In November 2017, the trio successfully applied for their case to be separated from the rest of their co-accused.
Speaking to the Daily Dispatch outside court on Friday, Diniso said: “We feel that our clients had nothing to do with all of this. They were not in municipal employ at the time and had never been in any municipal meeting which decided on the use of such funds.”
Others facing similar charges, are former BCM mayor Zukiswa Ncitha, who is now an ANC MP, her former deputy and now ANC MPL Themba Tinta, former council speaker Luleka Simon-Ndzele, senior ANC councillor Sindiswa Gomba, senior administrator Ondela Mahlangu, businesspeople Viwe Vazi and Dean Fanoe, and three entities linked to the accused.
The seven appeared for a pre-trial conference on Thursday, with Jacobs setting their trial date to the week of May 13 to 17 2019.
They have been charged with fraud, corruption and money laundering after R5.9m was used for services not sanctioned by National Treasury.
Such amount was paid to the account of taxi boss Mzwandile Sokwali’s Victory Ticket 750cc which was paid to transport mourners to various venues.
Sokwali later pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering, with him and his company fined R100,000.
Sokwali was in December 2014 also sentenced to five years in prison, a sentence which was wholly suspended for five years.
He had told court at the time he was threatened if he did not transfer some of the money as allegedly instructed by Mkolo to a list of beneficiaries and service providers.
Mkolo had denied such allegations.
BCM chief financial officer Vincent Pillay was suspended by the metro earlier in 2018 for his alleged involvement in the scandal.
He has also applied for his case to be separated from the rest of his co-accused...