{"id":44685,"date":"2025-12-11T04:48:17","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T04:48:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=44685"},"modified":"2025-12-11T04:48:17","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T04:48:17","slug":"outa-pushes-back-against-batohi-critics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/12\/11\/outa-pushes-back-against-batohi-critics\/","title":{"rendered":"Outa pushes back against Batohi critics"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p><h2>Outa says NDPP Shamila Batohi handled cross-examination professionally and her testimony does not erode public trust in the NPA.<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Organisation for Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has come out in defence of outgoing National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Shamila Batohi, pushing back against fierce criticism of her testimony at the inquiry into Johannesburg prosecutions boss Andrew Chauke\u2019s fitness to hold office. <\/p>\n<p>This after suspended Gauteng director of public prosecutions Andrew Chauke\u2019s advocate, Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, grilled Batohi, at the Nkabinde Inquiry on Monday. <\/p>\n<p>Stefanie Fick, Outa\u2019s accountability division head, said it was extremely prejudicial to judge Batohi\u2019s cross-examination only \u2013 but rather her entire evidence at the inquiry. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-outa-defends-batohi-s-inquiry-testimony\">Outa defends Batohi\u2019s inquiry testimony<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cOur system is an adversarial system and one [must] also judge it in that light\u2026 Batohi faced [a] nasty cross-examination but she stayed calm and collected. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am of the view she handled it well and answered all the questions,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ:<\/strong> <strong>NDPP interviews: Kubayi says DA\u2019s interdict \u2018misguided\u2019 amid concerns over Menzi Simelane<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Fick said nothing in Batohi\u2019s testimony or her answers during cross-examination damaged the public trust. <\/p>\n<p><em>The Citizen<\/em> has reported that legal experts were critical of Batohi\u2019s admissions at the inquiry under cross-examination \u2013 including not reading dockets before making decisions \u2013 and that these eroded public trust in the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). <\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe did mention that she did not read all the dockets but it is not a concession. It is a practice approved by our courts. <\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-outa-says-she-acted-professionally\">Outa says she acted professionally<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cThe NDPP is not expected to read all dockets,\u201d Fick said. <\/p>\n<p>Batohi, whose term ends in February next year, also admitted under cross-examination that at least one of the charges against Chauke was wrong, disputing President Cyril Ramaphosa\u2019s terms of reference. <\/p>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ:<\/strong> <strong>NPA struggles with high-profile corruption cases<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>But Fick countered that Batohi did not say that the terms of reference was wrong, but had simply stated that the draft terms of reference given to the president was different to the one Ramaphosa ultimately published. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe indicated that a sentence in the charge was incorrect. If it is incorrect, it is incorrect and she should point that out. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is what an honest witness does. I think she was honest and professional. She did not lose her temper despite being attacked by Chauke\u2019s defence team,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-inquiry-into-booysen\">Inquiry into Booysen <\/h3>\n<p>The inquiry is focusing on the racketeering charges authorised against former KwaZulu-Natal Hawks boss Major-General Johan Booysen and members of the Cato Manor Unit, and the withdrawal of murder charges against former crime-intelligence boss Richard Mdluli. <\/p>\n<p>Ngcukaitobi is expected to continue his grilling of Batohi at the inquiry today.<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOW READ:<\/strong> <strong>NPA legitimacy in question after Batohi<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Outa #pushes #Batohi #critics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Outa says NDPP Shamila Batohi handled cross-examination professionally and her testimony does not erode public trust in the NPA. The&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44685"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44685\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44687,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44685\/revisions\/44687"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}