ANC bigwigs Mabuza, Phosa ignore each other in court
Despite being in the same courtroom over the past few days, there has been no formal greetings or any form of acknowledgement between ANC chairperson in Mpumalanga, Premier David Mabuza and his erstwhile comrade, former ANC national treasurer-general Mathews Phosa.
The ANC senior members are wrangling in the High Court in Pretoria over the R10 million defamation lawsuit filed by Mabuza.
On Thursday, Mabuza’s counsel, Etienne Labuschagne SC said the relationship between the incumbent Mpumalanga premier and the former premier had soured over the years.
Labuschagne questioned why Phosa chose to “ignore” Mabuza and forward the damning top secret spy report to ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte in 2014.
That report alleged that Mabuza participated in spying on his ANC comrades between 1985 and 1993.
“This past week you and the plaintiff (Mabuza) have been seated in same courtroom and you have not greeted. I want to put it you that this fact that you won’t even acknowledge him by greeting, and you ignored him when you sent the letter to Ms Duarte means that you have an axe to grind with the premier,” said Labuschagne.
Phosa responded: “I’ve no axe to grind. He’s in politics and I’m in business …”
He said the two political heavyweights in Mpumalanga were not competing on any level.
Mabuza looked attentively as his counsel cross-examined Phosa.
Several ANC members aligned to Mabuza were in court, making remarks as Phosa testified. Hundreds of supporters were also milling outside the court premises.
Labuschagne moved to the testimony of Phosa’s former house manager, Jan Venter, who has claimed that Phosa’s wife told him that the former premier “dislikes” Mabuza.
Phosa responded: “I do not know. I cannot answer regarding what she is said to have said”.
Pressed further on this matter by Labuschagne, Phosa retorted: “I said I do not know. I’m not my wife”.
Earlier, Phosa told the court that Duarte had asked him questions regarding Mabuza, before the anonymous spy report landed at one of his Mpumalanga homes.
Phosa refuted assertions that he penned the highly controversial spy report discrediting Mabuza.
Phosa’s counsel, Mike Maritz SC, asked him to explain why, of all the ANC members in the top echelons, he chose share the document with Duarte.
“Why did you choose Ms Duarte as the addressee of the document?” Asked Maritz.
Phosa responded: “My lord, on the 2nd of April 2014, Ms Jessie Duarte visited my business office for political discussions on a wide range of issues. These, she thought were very important to be discussed at national level. This was in the context of national elections”.
Phosa added: “The last issue she raised at the end of that fairly long meeting was, ‘comrade Mathews, just tell me, we want to know as the officials of the ANC, who is this David Mabuza exactly?”
“I said to her ‘why’? He is the chairperson of the ANC in the province.”
Phosa said he explained to Duarte how he used to work together with Mabuza “in the underground”. He also told the court that he had appointed Mabuza as Mpumalanga education MEC in 1994.
The former Mpumalanga premier then told the court that when he initially received the spy report, he was “shocked”.
He said allegations by Mabuza that Phosa authored the document were a mere fabrication.
Phosa said after forwarding the report to Duarte, he later received a call from Beeld newspaper inquiring about the document while he was on a business trip to France. He was also informed that Mabuza was suing him for defamation.
Phosa is defending a R10-million defamation lawsuit that Mabuza filed after being fingered as an apartheid spy in the report, which is at the centre of the court wrangle between influential ANC leaders in Mpumalanga.
Phosa handed the report to the ANC leadership in September 2014. Mabuza insists Phosa authored the report.
The matter continues on Friday.