The corruption trial of former Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula was cut short again on Tuesday after she told the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria she was too ill to continue testifying.
Mapisa-Nqakula was in the middle of a grilling cross-examination by prosecutor Emile van der Merwe when she asked to be excused to see her doctor.
The former Speaker of Parliament and Defence Minister is on trial for corruption, accused of receiving bribes from SANDF contractor Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu during her tenure as minister.
On Tuesday, Van der Merwe confronted her with her SARS tax records for the period between 2017 and 2020. The records indicated that her travel and subsistence allowances were not declared to SARS.
Mapisa-Nqakula conceded that her tax affairs were ultimately her responsibility, but told the court that the Department of Defence handled the administrative side of her tax matters while she was in government.
She told the court she had received travel and subsistence allowances during her years in government but did not know the exact amount she had received.
“My tax returns were filed every year,” she said, asking that the matter be investigated between the Department of Defence and SARS.
The tax questioning came after the State had pressed her on explosive allegations that certain words, including “impepho”, “indumba”, “snuff”, “padkos” and “wig”, were used as coded language for money.
Mapisa-Nqakula denied that she used the words to solicit money from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, who is the State’s key witness in the corruption case.
As Van der Merwe continued to probe her finances, Mapisa-Nqakula told the court she was feeling unwell and could no longer continue.
She said she was not well and was asking to leave so that she could see her doctor, adding that she had initially tried to continue because she felt it would have been an embarrassment to ask to be released earlier.
Judge Mashudu Munzhelele accepted that the court could not continue while the accused was unwell and stopped proceedings for the day.
This is not the first time Mapisa-Nqakula’s health has interrupted her testimony. Earlier in September, proceedings were also cut short after she became ill while in the witness stand, delaying the trial that has already faced multiple postponements.
The latest postponement adds to growing frustration over the slow pace of the high-profile corruption case, which is seen as a key test of government’s commitment to hold former senior officials accountable.
Mapisa-Nqakula faces 12 counts of corruption and one count of money laundering. The State alleges she received at least R2.3 million in bribes from Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu in exchange for awarding and protecting defence contracts.
She has pleaded not guilty, arguing that the money was not bribes and that she never abused her position.
The case has now been postponed to 2 October 2026, when Mapisa-Nqakula is expected to return to the stand to continue her testimony and face further cross-examination by the State.
