Accused in NPF case to appeal DCEC’s constitutional authority to prosecute

The appeal centres on whether the DCEC has constitutional authority to prosecute criminal cases and whether the prosecution against the accused was lawfully initiated. Seretse, Sharifa Noor, Alphonse Molamu Ndzinge, Kgori Capital (Pty) Ltd and Kgori Holdings (Pty) Ltd are jointly facing a 63-count indictment that includes charges of stealing by an agent, forgery of an official document, conspiracy to defraud and money laundering.

In their grounds of appeal, Seretse and his co-appellants argue that the DCEC is an investigative body established by an Act of Parliament and that its functions do not include prosecuting criminal cases. "The DCEC is an investigative body. It is not a prosecutorial body. This is what is found in its Act," Seretse and company said. The appellants contend that the Constitution vests prosecutorial authority exclusively in the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and officers subordinate to the DPP. "The duty to prosecute, in terms of the law, is bestowed on the DPP. This power comes from the Constitution.