As momentum gathers to have the Guptas extradited from the United Arab Emirates, Advocate Andrea Johnson at the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has said Transnet will remain broken for years because of how the fugitive brothers looted South Africa’s logistics utility.
Interviewed on talk radio (*) this morning, the head of the NPA’s Investigating Directorate (ID) reflected on the “many aspects” and “many components” of Transnet that were affected by the period of state capture under former president Jacob Zuma’s administration.
“It will take years for these things to be fixed,” she said.
While two of the brothers, Atul and Rajesh, remain in custody in Dubai, “failure to prosecute the Guptas and others in state capture is not an option”, Johnson said.
Her boss, Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola, recently said the extradition of the brothers, who managed to flee the country after Zuma was ousted from power, was at an “advanced stage”.
It remains unclear whether the NPA’s focus for the moment is on Atul and Rajesh, arrested in early June following the issuance of an Interpol red-corner notice for their stake in money laundering in South Africa.
Despite their brother Ajay escaping arrest – for now – Johnson said the NPA was doing whatever it could to succeed in bringing the Guptas back to South Africa to stand trial.
“I cannot afford to fail, I really cannot afford to fail,” she said.
“I am doing what I am able to do, putting myself out there and saying this is what I have to do.
“I am not stopping to ponder about what I cannot do.”
* SOURCE: 702
