‘I’m not a criminal’: Mapisa-Nqakula denies bribe codes and WhatsApp chats in court

Former defence and military veterans minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has maintained that she did not request or receive money from South African National Defence Force (SANDF) logistics contractor Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu.

Mapisa-Nqakula faces 12 counts of corruption and one of money laundering stemming from her tenure as defence minister between 2016 and 2019. She allegedly solicited R4.5m in bribes from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, R2.1m of which was allegedly paid in cash, to secure and maintain government tenders.

Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, the state’s key witness, testified that code names such as indumba, impepho, snuff and wig were used to mask money requests.

Testifying before the Gauteng high court in Pretoria on Monday, Mapisa-Nqakula disputed the authenticity of WhatsApp conversations presented by Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu. In those chats, the two allegedly discussed money requests and the promotion of Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu’s husband, retired deputy surgeon-general Noel Ndhlovu.

Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu previously testified that Mapisa-Nqakula demanded a R2m bribe to secure her husband’s promotion to surgeon-general of the SANDF. Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu stated she refused to pay, believing her husband was fully qualified and should be appointed strictly on merit.

During proceedings, the court presented WhatsApp exchanges in which Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu allegedly told Mapisa-Nqakula that her husband was deeply concerned about a document extending the term of then-surgeon-general Lt-Gen Aubrey Sedibe.

Mapisa-Nqakula allegedly replied: “Ngumhlola nje lowo. Ngeke gogo” (“That’s shocking, it’s not possible”), adding that she had also received the document and noting, “it’ll get slippery.” Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu responded: “we trust in you my elder.”

However, in her testimony, Mapisa-Nqakula denied ever having this exchange with Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, arguing that the phrasing was inconsistent with how she speaks.

“These are not messages between myself and Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu,” Mapisa-Nqakula said. “There are messages contained that are not from me or her. Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu didn’t send me this message. I dispute this conversation… There are many chats with Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu that had nothing to do with myself and her.”

Mapisa-Nqakula stated she had no idea where the messages originated. Emphasising that the conversation never took place, she added that no one else, including her husband, children, or friends, had access to her phone. However, when asked if she could provide her own record of their WhatsApp history, she admitted she did not have one.

I’ve never asked for money from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu. I can’t stand before court and put together lies about someone. To sit and plan lies about Ndhlovu is not possible.—  Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, former defence and military veterans minister

State prosecutor Emile van der Merwe pressed Mapisa-Nqakula to admit to demanding the R2m bribe. Mapisa-Nqakula firmly denied the allegation, maintaining she never asked Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu for money.

Van der Merwe further asserted that Mapisa-Nqakula possessed the authority to ensure Ndhlovu’s promotion. Mapisa-Nqakula rejected this, insisting she had no influence over the appointment of SANDF officials.

“There’s no such thing. Even Ndhlovu and Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu know that,” Mapisa-Nqakula said. “I’ve never asked for money from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu. I can’t stand before court and put together lies about someone. To sit and plan lies about Ndhlovu is not possible.”

Mapisa-Nqakula had previously testified that Ndhlovu was passed over for the surgeon-general position because he lacked the necessary security clearance due to ongoing investigations, faced conduct concerns, and was not automatically entitled to the top role simply by serving as deputy.

She questioned why she would demand significant sums of cash from the contractor, adding that doing so would be “vicious.”

When Van der Merwe asked why Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu would make such allegations, Mapisa-Nqakula replied that she did not know why the contractor would lie about her.

“I ask myself that if I received this much money from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, what is it that she would’ve received in return?” Mapisa-Nqakula said. “I don’t think I could just come to you and give you so much money only to discover that there’s nothing I’m expecting in return from you.”

She told the court she had been asking herself that question since the trial began, emphasising that her version of events is the truth.

Van der Merwe asked whether Mapisa-Nqakula had used any code words other than those presented in court to solicit money. She insisted she had not, adding that demanding such large sums would have been vicious and greedy, traits she denied possessing.

“I didn’t have codes with Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu,” she said. “I don’t know, if this truly was a case of constantly taking money from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, what would’ve made me do such if indeed I had done such. That would’ve been vicious and greedy. I’m a harsh person, but I’m not a vicious person. I am not that which is described in Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu’s docket.”

Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu previously testified to giving Mapisa-Nqakula R150,000 in cash after a request was made using the code word “impepho.” However, Mapisa-Nqakula admitted to receiving only actual impepho (a traditional African incense plant), not money.

“Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu probably had someone else she had codes with regarding money. To me, impepho meant impepho,” Mapisa-Nqakula testified.

Van der Merwe then posed a hypothetical scenario, asking whether two criminals discussing a crime over a recorded phone line or WhatsApp would use explicit words to commit the offense. Mapisa-Nqakula replied that she did not know because she had “never been a criminal” and had “never had codes in relation to criminal activities.”

“Criminals are criminals. I don’t know the criminals’ language,” she said. “These are allegations against me. I’m here facing charges. I don’t know when the reference is about me being associated with criminals, even if one is making an example.”

Pressing further, Van der Merwe asked what she would have done if Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu had come to her house to give her R150,000, as alleged. Mapisa-Nqakula maintained that she would have told the contractor to keep her money.

“In all 12 counts, I have not been given money by Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu. I didn’t give back her money because she never brought money to my house,” she said. “I don’t have terms like snuff or impepho in reference to money with Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu.”

When asked why her legal team failed to dispute Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu’s claim that Mapisa-Nqakula requested impepho two days in a row, Mapisa-Nqakula blamed her defence team, noting that her lawyers held the mandate to dispute and question the witness’s messages on her behalf.

Van der Merwe concurred with her assessment. “I agree with you. You would not have asked for impepho two days in a row. The reason for that is that, in the first place, you didn’t request actual impepho, and you never received actual impepho,” he said, reasserting that she had received R150,000 instead.

Mapisa-Nqakula was then questioned regarding her travel and subsistence (S&T) allowances for international trips taken while in office. She stated she did not know the exact total amount she had been disbursed, adding that she did not spend all of it.

When asked if she declared her S&T allowances on her South African Revenue Service (Sars) tax returns, she replied that she submitted returns covering both her salary and S&T expenses.

The court presented her Sars records from 2017 to 2020. However, before they could proceed, the defence opposed the submission, arguing it had only received the document on Monday morning and lacked adequate time to review it.

Mapisa-Nqakula stated she had also not had an opportunity to examine the records and requested time to go through them with her tax advisor.

The matter has been postponed to Tuesday to allow Mapisa-Nqakula time to review the documents.