ZUMA ADVOCATE ROPED IN FOR SIPHO’S PROSECUTION

MBABANE – The Crown is pulling out all the stops to ensure that Sipho Shongwe is convicted of the alleged murder of Victor Gamedze.

This is so because the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has engaged the services of prominent South African Advocate Michael Hellens - Senior Counsel (SC).
The prominent advocate has been roped in to assist the Crown in Shongwe’s prosecution and in all the other applications he has filed at the High Court.
Hellens is currently representing former South Africa President Jacob Zuma in his corruption trial.

He replaced Advocate Kemp J Kemp‚ who represented Zuma for over a decade. He would represent for the former president when he appears in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on July 27.

Homicide

Hellens also represents Zuma’s son Duduzane in his culpable homicide trial. Zuma junior was charged for the deaths of Phumzile Dube and Jeanette Mashaba‚ whom the State alleged died as a consequence of his negligent driving.
Duduzane’s Porsche crashed into a minibus in which the women were travelling, in February 2014. Dube died on the scene and Mashaba‚ who was injured‚ passed away in hospital.

Zuma senior has been charged with corruption‚ racketeering and tax evasion, related to his allegedly corrupt dealings with his former financial advisor Schabir Shaik and French arms company Thint.

Hellens also represented the Guptas.
This was in the case in which Gupta-linked companies and individuals were  seeking to stop a new preservation order on properties worth about R250 million.
The application was brought by Oakbay Investments (Pty) Ltd, Aerohaven (Pty) Ltd, Ashu Chawla, Oakbay acting Chief Executive Officer Ronica Ragavan and former Director Varun Gupta, Westdawn Investments (Pty) Ltd and Annex Distribution (Pty) Ltd.

In the Kingdom of Eswatini, he is not only expected to assist the Crown to prosecute Shongwe but to also convince the court why he (Shongwe) should not be provided with evidence or have charges against him withdrawn.

Through his attorney Sipho Mnisi, Shongwe has moved an application to be provided with evidence linking him to the murder of Gamedze.

He is also demanding that he be provided with the list of witnesses or have the charge against him withdrawn.  Shongwe asserted that police were failing to arrest the people who were behind the murder of Gamedze and that he was allegedly being made a sacrificial lamb. This application is being vigorously opposed by the Crown and is pending before High Principal Judge Qinisile Mabuza.

The Crown is still to indict Shongwe, who has been languishing in custody for six months now.
The Supreme Court recently reserved its judgment where the Crown is seeking to stop Judge Sipho Nkosi from proceeding with Shongwe’s bail hearing.
The matter was heard by Judge Majahenkhaba Dlamini, sitting with Judge Stanley Maphalala and Judge Jacobus Annandale.
Judge Nkosi vowed to continue hearing Shongwe’s bail application on July 9, 2018, despite that there was also a directive from the chief justice to the effect that the matter should not proceed pending the appeal filed by the Crown.

When Judge Nkosi informed all and sundry that he would hear the murder suspect’s bail hearing, come rain or shine, Judge Fakudze had ordered that the High Court should wait until the Supreme Court determined the appeal noted or filed by the Crown.
Bail
The order by Judge Fakudze, according to the Crown, had not been appealed or reviewed. The Supreme Court also directed that the bail hearing in the High Court should be held in abeyance.

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