The NPA’s asbestos corruption case against former ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, now the leader of the African Congress for Transformation, has been dealt another serious blow with the loss of a second witness.
Advocate Tshepo Tsuaeli, who ranked second among the 80 state witnesses who would testify against the accused, including businessman Edwin Sodi, passed away after a tragic car crash in May last year.
Tsuaeli, dubbed “the good advocate” among his community members, died in the hospital on May 20 last year due to injuries following a car accident.
He was driving with two friends when he lost control of the car. Another passenger died two weeks later, and the other survived with injuries.
Sunday World learned that, at the time of his death, Tsuaeli was serving suspension at the Free State department of human settlements. Speakers at his memorial service intimated that the suspension was linked to ANC factional politics.
Magashule, the 13th accused in the case, was part of a throng of mourners who attended Tsuaeli’s funeral to pay their final respects.
In court documents, Tsuaeli, a former acting head of the department, testified that the asbestos contract was illegal and irregularly awarded.
He also submitted that the implicated officials blatantly lied to validate the deal.
He would have further testified that the deal went through despite manipulation of treasury regulations and a lack of competitive bidding process.
Tsuaeli was not the first person the NPA lost as a witness. During Magashule’s bail hearing in November 2020, the state claimed that his ex-personal assistant, US-based Moroadi Cholota, was their star witness.
State prosecutor, Johannes De Nysschen, told the court in November 2020 during Magashule’s bail application that Cholota was a state witness and Magashule was, consequently, not entitled to communicate with her.
After the Hawks and the FBI failed to convince Cholota to testify against Magashule, her former political principal in the Free State Premier’s Office, they added her to the list of the accused.
Cholota was later detained in Washington over an expired visa.
The state told the court last year that it intended to extradite her back to South Africa. This was despite offers by her legal team that an extradition was unnecessary since she could be brought before court if summoned.
Magashule, Sodi, and 12 others face charges of fraud, corruption, and money laundering for the failed R250-million contract the Free State department of
human settlements awarded to Sodi’s Blackhead Consulting for the assessment, audit and remov–al- of asbestos roofing from various homes in the province.
According to the state, the money was squandered, and a portion of it ended up in Magashule’s pocket.
The state alleged that on June 5, 2011, Cholota requested from one of the joint venture companies of the late Igo Mpambani, Sodi’s slain business partner, an amount of R500 000, from which R30 000 went to an SRC president named Nkate and R470 000 to a company selling laptops.
In his defence, Magashule said that the office of the premier requested the donation, and the R470 000 was used to buy tablets for needy students, while the R30 000 was used to sponsor an Africa Day event in Cuba, hosted by a Free State student leader. Additionally-, Mpambani had donated R300 000 to Griffin Edge.
Magashule said the funds were for the purchase of laptops for needy students, denying the “false impression” that the money had ended up in his pocket.
Mpambani had also paid R250 000 to Astra Travel to cover the costs of the Free State ANC delegation.
Magashule argued that the state had omitted to mention that he had not been part of that delegation.
Regarding the R53 000 that Cholota had obtained from Mpambani “for student fees of the child of a certain Ms Mokoena”, Magashule denied knowledge of the transaction.
Trial in the case will begin on April 15.
The NPA did not respond to a question about how Tsuaeli’s death would affect the case.
