All day on Monday, former Chief Operating Officer Basani Baloyi had withstood a relentless battering during cross-examination by Advocate Dali Mpofu, for Mkhwebane.

Baloyi was an impressive witness who did not buckle or fall for Mpofu’s now characteristic sleight of tongue in the framing of questions. So frustrated by Baloyi was Mfofu that he burst out “you have been the worst witness so far” at the end.

The People’s Advocate was in a mood.

Earlier Mpofu had stated that Baloyi’s evidence was “irrelevant” and fell outside the recommendations of the expert panel who set the parameters of the inquiry. Besides, she was a disgruntled former employee, like the legions of others who have already testified over six weeks.

Later, objecting to the flighting of a highly-incriminating tweet purportedly by Mkhwebane’s former “political adviser”, attorney, the late Sibusiso Nyembe, Mpofu shouted, “this is a process, not a shebeen”.

The tweet read “beyond dispensing political-economy and socio-political advice to PP I also jerk up legal services on high-level litigation matters like CIEX/Absa and Vrede dairy farm matter”.

Responding to a statement by DA committee member Kevin Mileham that the Twitter account belonged to Nyembe, now deceased, Mpofu objected and stated that he had a duty to “defend the dignity of the dead”.

“We have to protect our people if you don’t want to defend the dignity of black people we will protect it. The culture of black people is that you don’t abuse….(at which point committee chair Qubudile Dyantyi cut Mpofu off).

Dyantyi told a babbling Mpofu “don’t interfere”.

Baloyi was pressed by Mileham for her opinion on the tweet itself, which Mpofu objected to vehemently. 

The former COO said that she read the tweet as Nyembe’s announcing that as Chief of Staff he worked on high-level litigation matters with Mkhwebane.

Visit Daily Maverick’s home page for more news, analysis and investigations

The hearing resumed more calmly on Tuesday with the cross-examination by Mpofu of Lufuno Ndou, a former executive manager at the PP who testified to the committee on 18 August. 

Ndou testified earlier that with regard to the investigation into the Gupta family-backed Vrede Dairy money laundering scheme, he had been warned by Mkhwebane that the PP investigator in the matter, Advocate Erica Cilliers “was doing the bidding of the DA”.

As a result, the file had been transferred to “national” office.

He also revealed that Mkhwebane had personally phoned him to suggest she had wanted no adverse findings on the ANC politicians involved in the Vrede Dairy report. Mpofu on Tuesday said Mkhwebane denied ever making the call.

Previously Sphelo Samuel, Free State head of the PP, testified that he had personally removed the names of ANC politicians Ace Magashule and Mosebenzi Zwane from Mkhwebane’s final report (which was set aside by the courts later. Mkhwebane was sent back to the drawing board).

Ndou testified that Mkhwebane had informed him that she would be “happy” if there were no adverse findings against Magashule and Zwane.

“I understood that to be a wish and not an instruction,” he told the committee.

Mpofu on Tuesday suggested that this comment to Ndou had been Mkhwebane’s “personal view” and suggested that this could not possibly have had any impact on his work.

That Mkhwebane was also the executive head of the institution she ran with an iron fist and in gorgeous high-heels as well Ndou’s boss did not seem to matter, Mpofu seemed to suggest.

Ndou nodded in agreement.

With the explosion of the #Guptaleaks in the media in 2017 it became clear that former president Jacob Zuma’s business associates and friends, the Gupta family, had used some of the R215-million invested by the Free State government in Vrede scheme to pay for a R30-million Gupta wedding at Sun City.

Evidence leader, Advocate Nazreen Bawa previously set out the merits of a Pretoria high court judgment by Judge Ronel Tolmay setting aside Mkhwebane’s final 2018 Estina/Vrede Report. The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) later dismissed the PP’s application to appeal this judgment.

Committee members have heard how six months prior to issuing her report, further evidence that sought to illustrate how the Gupta family controlled the project was published in the media and also in a treasury investigation, which had recommended disciplinary action be taken.

Mpofu argued on Tuesday that the reason why Mkhwebane had not sought to use the evidence in the #Gupaleaks as this would have taken more time.

Also, he said that in an email of 13 July 2017 Mkhwebane had actually set out a summary of the allegations in the #Guptaleaks, proof that she did not ignore them.

In reality, her final report indicates that she did indeed steer clear of the damning evidence contained in the #Guptaleaks in her final report.

The hearing continues. DM