Court dismisses Magashule’s former PA Moroadi Cholota’s bid to have charges dropped

Ex-Free State premier Ace Magashule’s former personal assistant Moroadi Cholota’s application to have her fraud and corruption charges in the R255-million asbestos case thrown out of court has been dismissed. 

Judge Mareena Opperman dismissed Cholota’s application in the Free State High Court on Monday 26 August. Reasons for the ruling will be provided at a later stage.

In her urgent application, Cholota argued that the charges against her were unlawful and unconstitutional and had no reasonable chance of leading to a successful prosecution. 

Read more: Moroadi Cholota asks court to declare Free State asbestos charges unconstitutional and invalid

The court heard arguments from advocate Loyiso Makapela, appearing for Cholota, and from advocate Sandra Freese for the Free State NPA. 

Makapela said Cholota’s urgent application was aimed at vindicating her constitutional rights rather than delaying or avoiding trial. Cholota was granted R2,500 bail recently after the Bloemfontein Magistrates’ Court found she was not a flight risk.

She is one of the accused, along with Magashule, in the R255-million Free State asbestos scandal. She faces five charges including fraud and corruption.

The other co-accused are businessman Edwin Sodi; former director-general of the national Department of Housing, Thabane Zulu; Nthimotse Mokhesi, Mahlomola Matlakala, Sello Radebe, Adel Kgotso Manyeki, Nozipho Molikoe, Albertus Venter, Margaret-Ann Diedericks and former Mangaung mayor Olly Mlamleli.

Among the companies charged are Blackhead Consulting, 602 Consulting Solutions, Mastertrade 232 and Ori Group.

Cholota allegedly instructed the late businessman Igo Mpambani, Sodi’s business partner, to make payments to third parties. This was seemingly done on behalf of Magashule.

In August 2015, for instance, Mpambani used some of the proceeds of the asbestos contract to settle the student fees for the daughter of then-acting high court judge Refiloe Mokoena. Her daughter had been studying at a college in the United States.

Cholota was arrested in the US in April 2024. She arrived at Oliver Tambo International Airport on 8 August after being extradited.

Makapela claimed that Cholota had “no confidence” that prosecutors would handle her case objectively, particularly her claims that she was unjustly extradited.

She said the court should consider the urgent application challenging aspects of her extradition rather than leave those issues to be ventilated in the pre-trial hearing for the asbestos case, set down for 11 September.

The judge wasn’t convinced. 

Makapela persisted: “The main thing is to vindicate her constitutional rights as she observed being violated.

“Once this is over and the portion declaratory has not succeeded, she will then submit herself to that [court] process freely,” Makapela added, insisting that Cholota wasn’t trying to delay the case against her.

Adv Sandra Freese told the court the NPA had not submitted a replying affidavit because the investigating officer in the matter, Benjamin Calitz from the Hawks, was on other investigations and unavailable.

Makapela argued that the NPA had failed to respond as it had nothing to say in its defence. 

The State has previously argued that “Magashule and Cholota used their positions to either solicit payments from service providers for the benefit of other government officials or possible own benefit or to defraud the department and to misappropriate funds earmarked for students”.

Cholota is back in court on 11 September for pretrial purposes. The trial, along with her co-accused, is set to start in April 2025. DM