Judges lash out at corruption in high places

‘[It is] the type of crime that at the moment constitutes a veritable cancer in our society,’ Judge Eberhard Bertelsmann said while hearing Yengeni\'s challenge against a fraud conviction and four-year sentence. His colleague, Ferdi Preller, said the effect of public corruption was devastating for the country and democracy. ‘This is not only an economic crime, but undermines the faith the public has in the government. That can eventually lead to anarchy.’ The judges also grilled prosecutor Riegal du Toit on the State\'s decision to contest the trial magistrate\'s imposition of a four-year sentence on Yengeni – of which at least eight months had to be served. The state is seeking an 18-month suspended jail term. Full report in The Witness

The effect of an 18-month suspended sentence would be that Yengeni could return to Parliament immediately, the judges pointed out in a report on the News24 site. When Du Toit said a suspended sentence would be an appropriate deterrent, Preller asked: ‘Who are you going to deter by this sentence? ‘If people are told it is alright, you can defraud the government of R40 000-odd or you can take a gift of R180 000 and not disclose it – you will get a suspended sentence and continue in Parliament – is that the message we want to send out? Does every MP get one bite of the apple?’ The judges also wanted to know whether corrupt public officials should be allowed to continue holding public office, and whether it was not the function of the courts to protect the public against such crimes. Preller said: ‘It is not the kind of country where you would want to live where every public official gets one shot at a hefty crime without being sent to jail.’ Full report on the News24 site

Earlier, the credibility of Yengeni\'s claim that former NPA head Bulelani Ngcuka promised him a R5 000 fine in exchange for pleading guilty to fraud was questioned by both the judges and prosecutor, who considered it not only improbable, but also unlawful and unconstitutional. They also made the point that no presiding officer could ever be held to a sentencing agreement struck between the prosecution and defence. According to a report on the IoL site, Yengeni claimed that Ngcuka promised him a fine not exceeding R5 000 if he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of fraud. He was initially charged with corruption and fraud, and pleaded guilty to the alternative to the corruption charge. He was convicted of defrauding Parliament by failing to disclose a near 50% discount he received on a 4X4 Mercedes Benz. Matthew Chaskalson, for the National Director of Public Prosecutions, described Yengeni\'s version as fanciful and questioned why it only came to the fore two years after the fact. Full report on the IoL site