When an unemployed teenager charged with a violent offence appears in court represented by a senior advocate charging R20,000 an hour, the scenario points directly to the criminal infiltration of South Africa's legal value chain.
Addressing a recent parliamentary summit, KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi used that stark example to outline his concerns regarding the justice system.
"Logic tells everyone that this lawyer is funded by crime. We cannot give you the names, but we know the names of the lawyers who are paid," Mkhwanazi said. He added that a person at the same summit had said that defence attorneys routinely put up bail for indigent clients in gang-related cases later recouping the costs directly from gang leadership. He said it was also alleged that attorneys' trust accounts were being used to conceal cash payments from criminal sources
Under the Legal Practice Act, using a trust account in an inappropriate manner can lead to a finding of professional misconduct which carries strict penalties, including disbarment.
Mkhwanazi called for an independent research audit spanning the entire value including police officers, defence counsel and presiding officers. He noted that law enforcement cannot dismantle organised networks in isolation if regulatory bodies fail to scrutinise the ethical posture of the legal fraternity.
The provincial commissioner also highlighted operational hurdles in implementing the recommendations of the Madlanga Commission. While dedicated prosecutors are assigned to work with the task team, police must write to the National Director of Public Prosecutions and seek formal authorisation for every case they intend to prosecute.
“There are cases where for almost a month we’re still waiting for decisions. We’re still waiting for delegation for them to prosecute,” Mkhwanazi said, adding that statutory restrictions were a major part of the problem.
In response, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago explained that prosecutors are typically given a single, blanket mandate to prosecute within their jurisdiction by the relevant Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
“In the case of the commission task team prosecutors, there was a need to issue a new mandate, as the prosecutors were drawn from different provinces to assist the team,” Kganyago said, adding that the NPA was unaware of any delays in prosecuting Madlanga Commission-related cases.
Regarding the allegations against legal practitioners, Legal Practice Council (LPC) spokesperson Kabelo Letebele stated that the council would request further information and supporting evidence from Mkhwanazi, promising that any misconduct would be processed through established regulatory channels.
Concurrently, Mbekezeli Benjamin of judicial watchdog Judges Matter emphasised that any allegations of impropriety against legal and judicial officers cause severe reputational damage and must be swiftly dealt with.
thobeka.ngema@nationalmg.co.za