Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga has questioned the legal grounds for charging National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola exclusively with offences under the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), after Masemola appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on four counts linked to a R360 million contract with Medicare24 Tshwane District. The charges stem from allegations that Masemola failed to act promptly when alerted to irregularities in the contract, resulting in approximately R50 million being paid before the deal was stopped.

Allegations Surrounding Contract And PFMA Charges

Medicare24 Tshwane District, the contract recipient, is reportedly linked to Vusimuzi ‘Cat’ Matlala, who is facing a separate attempted murder case. Advocate Andrea Johnson, former head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), testified that General Matlou from the risk audit division had flagged unlawful conduct in the contract and urged Masemola to intervene, but the payout continued until the contract was cancelled.

“General Matlou from the risk audit of the police brought it to the attention of the then commissioner to say that there are these offences taking place, there’s unlawfulness happening in this contract, and commissioner, as the accounting officer, you need to stop the contract,” Johnson said during testimony.

Legal Rationale And Community Response

Justice Madlanga highlighted the PFMA-focused nature of the prosecution, noting, “Because all that General Masemola is charged with are the PFMA offences. So when you look at him, those offences… are not additional to anything, are not related to anything. It’s just those PFMA offences only.” This questioning comes amid rising public debate over prosecutorial discretion and the absence of linked corruption charges in the current case.

Public Interest SA expressed concern over potential abuse of prosecutorial powers, pointing to the lack of corruption-linked charges. Meanwhile, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) remains confident, with spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago stating, “IDAC did their investigations and with the evidence that they’ve got, they’ve got belief that it is prudent for it to come to court and they would not have brought it here to court if they did not believe that the cases was watertight.”

Masemola’s Response And Next Steps

General Masemola has maintained his innocence, asserting he halted the contract upon being informed of irregularities. “I think I did what I was supposed to do. I stopped the contract, so I don’t know why I should be here,” Masemola told reporters outside court.

The matter is set to proceed in court, with ongoing scrutiny from the judiciary, legal analysts, and civil society regarding the scope and focus of charges against senior public officials under the PFMA alone.