NPA unit to focus on complex and high-profile corruption cases

The National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDDP), Shamila Batohi, officially introduced the head of the unit, advocate Hermoine Cronje to the media on Friday.

Batohi said the new unit aims to rid the country of endemic corrupt and will force the NPA “to pull up its socks”. 

"We are required to focus on serious, complex and high-profile corruption, particularly those emanating from the commissions of inquiry into state capture, the Public Investment Corporation and the South African Revenue Service," said Cronje.

The unit will focus on three main areas: corruption in the security sector, specifically the criminal justice system, state-owned enterprises, and high-level public and private sector corruption. 

"The idea is to focus on those who are systematically and actively sought to corrupt government procurement systems and processes for private gain. We will take on a very small number of cases and our case selection criteria will ensure we address those who plan, orchestrated and instigated the corruption of the system and ultimately derive the benefit of the looting of state coffers and not only those foot soldiers who merely implement the corrupt schemes," added Cronje. 

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Both Batohi and Cronje said they are aware of the enormous task facing them, but both believe they have the full support of other crime-fighting agencies such as the police and the Hawks. 

Cronje said they will not replace these crime-fighting agencies but rather work alongside them.

On the funding of the unit, Batohi said Treasury has already made a commitment to put aside a budget. For the NPA itself, more work needs to be done to source funding as cases need to be reviewed for prosecution and there is a massive need to recruit more staff. 

Cronje emphasized that those who think they can commit crime in South Africa and evade prosecution abroad, such as the Guptas, must be warned as there is legislation to bring them to book and the unit plans to make use of it.