The Western Cape High Court has dismissed former Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions Nomgcobo Jiba’s application to be reinstated with full benefits.
Jiba had asked the court to compel President Cyril Ramaphosa and National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Advocate Shamila Batohi to reinstate her with immediate effect.
In dismissing the application, the court found that Ms Jiba had not made a case. Jiba also wanted the court to interdict or prohibit the president and the NDPP from filling the position until the finalisation of the review.
Ramaphosa fired Jiba in April 2019, together with senior prosecutor Lawrence Mrwebi, after retired Constitutional Court Justice Yvonne Mokgoro recommended he sack them from the NPA, following an inquiry.
The inquiry found they were not ‘fit and proper to hold their respective offices’, according to a statement from the Presidency.
The dismissal of Jiba’s application was hailed as good news for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and for Adv. Batohi by Democratic Alliance Shadow Minister of Justice Glynnis Breytenbach.
She said Jiba had been ‘instrumental in hollowing out the NPA and setting the course for where we find ourselves today – rampant corruption on a grand scale with no consequences. The mess that has been left for Adv. Batohi to clean up was largely caused by Jiba, Lawrence Mwrebi and Shaun Abrahams’.
Breytenbach added: ‘The toxic influence that Ms Jiba wielded cannot be overstated and any hope of righting the ship would have been destroyed by her return. The criminal justice system is well rid of Ms Jiba and her total disregard for her constitutional duty and the Rule of Law.”
Another part of Jiba’s application, which will be heard at a later stage, concerns an application to order that Ramaphosa violated the Constitution and therefore acted unlawfully when he instituted an inquiry against her in terms of Section 12 of the NPA Act.
The IRR observes that former president Jacob Zuma’s enablers are gradually being squeezed out of positions of influence.