Advocate Seth Nthai, the vice chairman of the General Council of the Bar of South Africa, has resigned pending the investigation of a complaint against him. On Wednesday, the council issued a statement saying that it had received a complaint against Nthai - who is also a senior member of the Pretoria and Johannesburg Bars.
The complaint was lodged last Friday by British barrister Toby Landau. The complaint apparently relates to Nthai's alleged conduct while executing a brief to represent the South African government before the Washington-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes against a claim instituted by 11 Italian investors. "More particularly it relates to alleged discussions between Mr Nthai and a certain Mr Mercerano, representing the Italian investors."The alleged discussions were apparently held without instructions from his instructing attorneys and allegedly related to "the merits of the government's case, their defences, technical strategies, a possible settlement of the case and a possible reward for Mr Nthai in the event of such a settlement."
The council said that following a meeting of the Pretoria Bar on Tuesday, Nthai agreed to tender his immediate resignation from the General Council of the Bar and all positions he currently held in its sub-committees. "[He has] tender[ed] an undertaking that he will accept a voluntary suspension and not practise as an advocate until such time as the investigation has been finalised, provided that it be done with due diligence and expedition."
A disciplinary committee consisting of a retired judge and two silks will be appointed by the Bar Councils of the Pretoria and Johannesburg Bars. The two silks will act as pro forma prosecutors and will lead evidence before the committee.
Source: IoL
Showing posts with label Seth Nthai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Seth Nthai. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Behind Ramatlhodi's front
Ngoako Ramatlhodi's secret Bushveld farm really was his, but his friend who fronted for him bankrolled it too -- before sharing in casino rights awarded by the Limpopo government, where Ramatlhodi was premier. Ramatlhodi, now chairperson of Parliament's justice committee, is tipped for the position of national director of public prosecutions.
The Mail & Guardian earlier this month revealed Ramatlhodi's hush-hush role in the 1996 purchase of a farm near Mokopane, while he was premier. It was sold two-and-a-half years later to Anglo Platinum for the controversial resettlement of communities, at a face-value profit of R1-million.
Ramatlhodi's role was obscured by the fact that the buyer was a close corporation owned on paper by his friend, Limpopo businessperson Joe Mogodi. Ramatlhodi volunteered that he was the true owner during a long-running Scorpions probe, since closed, into allegations that he took bribes from a social grants contractor. Mogodi, however, insisted to the M&G that he was the owner.
The records of an October 2000 North Gauteng High Court hearing, in which First National Bank sued Ramatlhodi for debt, reveal:
* FNB, which extended the loan to purchase the farm, knew Ramatlhodi was the true owner;
* In correspondence with the bank Mogodi confirmed he was merely Ramatlhodi's "go-between";
* Ramatlhodi's salary as premier was insufficient to meet FNB's instalments; and
* Mogodi paid hundreds of thousands of rands to cover the instalments and settle debt, leaving him in a "financial predicament".
Mogodi, in other words, bent over backwards to fund the purchase of the farm for Ramatlhodi. During this time Mogodi vied for a casino licence, which was ultimately awarded to a consortium including him. Completing the circle, the provincial gambling board that awarded the licence was headed by Seth Nthai -- Ramatlhodi's personal advocate who defended him against the FNB debt claim. From the facts of that dispute, Nthai would have known that Mogodi had bankrolled the farm for the premier. Mogodi declined to comment. Ramatlhodi and Nthai failed to comment by the time of going to press.
Ngoako Properties, the close corporation owned on paper by Mogodi, offered R2.2-million to buy Sterkwater-De Hoogedoorns farm, plus a further R600 000 for cattle and implements, in January 1996. The offer was accepted. FNB approved a five-year loan of R2.8-million to fund the purchase. Both Mogodi and Ramatlhodi signed surety. But Mogodi may not have been fully aware of what he had let himself in for. The record of the FNB-Ramatlhodi hearing reflects FNB's Polokwane bank manager, Hendrik Janse van Rensburg, writing to his regional head office in April 1996: "We enclose the premier's balance sheet and we confirm that he signed the letter of suretyship … Repayment of the loan was discussed with him and he referred us to Mr Mogodi."
Three years later, once things had gone belly-up, Van Rensburg reported to his regional office: "During March 1996 the premier approached the bank for a 100% long-term loan of R2.8-million … The bank approved the loan subject to the condition that the term of the loan be reduced to five years ... "The premier could not register the farm property in his name in view of his position as premier, and he requested his personal friend, Mr J Mogodi, to register the close corporation in his name … "[Regional office instructed us] to request Mr Mogodi to sign a letter of suretyship and register a bond over his [own] farm property. He reluctantly agreed, informing us as follows: he was not even present when the financing of the farm had been discussed … "Mr Mogodi has serviced the instalments from the loan account without any financial assistance from the premier. He was eventually forced to surrender his endowment policies and MIA [managed investment account] to continue with his trading activities."
From the start, Van Rensburg's reports show, Mogodi attempted to negotiate a lighter burden with FNB. The monthly instalments were R55 000 a month. By early 1997 Mogodi had, on Van Rensburg's evidence, already put in R300 000 of his own money, but the loan account was in arrears. An FNB agricultural adviser proposed selling off less viable portions of the farm, but Mogodi, according to another Van Rensburg report, informed them: "He [Ramatlhodi] has decided to keep the farm property." Mogodi also told the bank they could only afford to repay at a rate of R35 000 to R40 000 a month, consisting of R20 000 (Mogodi), R10 000 (Ramatlhodi) and R5 000 to R10 000 (farm income). That Ramatlhodi could never have intended to pay the entire loan from his salary is clear: as late as 2004, Ramatlhodi grossed less than R60 000 a month. His net salary would have been well below FNB's R55 000 instalments.
The loan account fell further into arrears. In September 1997 cattle and implements were auctioned. When Angloplat made an offer of R3.2-million for the farm property in September 1998 it was accepted. The profit went straight to FNB, but the loan account was so far in arrears that FNB demanded Mogodi and Ramatlhodi pay a shortfall of more than R1-million. Mogodi eventually paid R375 000 and FNB let him off, but it sued Ramatlhodi for the balance. After the first day of the trial, in October 2000, FNB and Ramatlhodi settled. The details are not known.
On the available evidence, Mogodi's R375 000 brought his total contribution towards Ramatlhodi's farm to at least R675 000, and potentially much more. Did he get anything in return? Although the full circumstances are not known, Mogodi soon benefited from a casino licence. This is made problematic by the timing of the award and the dual role of Nthai, Ramatlhodi's defence advocate in the FNB matter.
Source: Mail & Guardian
The Mail & Guardian earlier this month revealed Ramatlhodi's hush-hush role in the 1996 purchase of a farm near Mokopane, while he was premier. It was sold two-and-a-half years later to Anglo Platinum for the controversial resettlement of communities, at a face-value profit of R1-million.
Ramatlhodi's role was obscured by the fact that the buyer was a close corporation owned on paper by his friend, Limpopo businessperson Joe Mogodi. Ramatlhodi volunteered that he was the true owner during a long-running Scorpions probe, since closed, into allegations that he took bribes from a social grants contractor. Mogodi, however, insisted to the M&G that he was the owner.
The records of an October 2000 North Gauteng High Court hearing, in which First National Bank sued Ramatlhodi for debt, reveal:
* FNB, which extended the loan to purchase the farm, knew Ramatlhodi was the true owner;
* In correspondence with the bank Mogodi confirmed he was merely Ramatlhodi's "go-between";
* Ramatlhodi's salary as premier was insufficient to meet FNB's instalments; and
* Mogodi paid hundreds of thousands of rands to cover the instalments and settle debt, leaving him in a "financial predicament".
Mogodi, in other words, bent over backwards to fund the purchase of the farm for Ramatlhodi. During this time Mogodi vied for a casino licence, which was ultimately awarded to a consortium including him. Completing the circle, the provincial gambling board that awarded the licence was headed by Seth Nthai -- Ramatlhodi's personal advocate who defended him against the FNB debt claim. From the facts of that dispute, Nthai would have known that Mogodi had bankrolled the farm for the premier. Mogodi declined to comment. Ramatlhodi and Nthai failed to comment by the time of going to press.
Ngoako Properties, the close corporation owned on paper by Mogodi, offered R2.2-million to buy Sterkwater-De Hoogedoorns farm, plus a further R600 000 for cattle and implements, in January 1996. The offer was accepted. FNB approved a five-year loan of R2.8-million to fund the purchase. Both Mogodi and Ramatlhodi signed surety. But Mogodi may not have been fully aware of what he had let himself in for. The record of the FNB-Ramatlhodi hearing reflects FNB's Polokwane bank manager, Hendrik Janse van Rensburg, writing to his regional head office in April 1996: "We enclose the premier's balance sheet and we confirm that he signed the letter of suretyship … Repayment of the loan was discussed with him and he referred us to Mr Mogodi."
Three years later, once things had gone belly-up, Van Rensburg reported to his regional office: "During March 1996 the premier approached the bank for a 100% long-term loan of R2.8-million … The bank approved the loan subject to the condition that the term of the loan be reduced to five years ... "The premier could not register the farm property in his name in view of his position as premier, and he requested his personal friend, Mr J Mogodi, to register the close corporation in his name … "[Regional office instructed us] to request Mr Mogodi to sign a letter of suretyship and register a bond over his [own] farm property. He reluctantly agreed, informing us as follows: he was not even present when the financing of the farm had been discussed … "Mr Mogodi has serviced the instalments from the loan account without any financial assistance from the premier. He was eventually forced to surrender his endowment policies and MIA [managed investment account] to continue with his trading activities."
From the start, Van Rensburg's reports show, Mogodi attempted to negotiate a lighter burden with FNB. The monthly instalments were R55 000 a month. By early 1997 Mogodi had, on Van Rensburg's evidence, already put in R300 000 of his own money, but the loan account was in arrears. An FNB agricultural adviser proposed selling off less viable portions of the farm, but Mogodi, according to another Van Rensburg report, informed them: "He [Ramatlhodi] has decided to keep the farm property." Mogodi also told the bank they could only afford to repay at a rate of R35 000 to R40 000 a month, consisting of R20 000 (Mogodi), R10 000 (Ramatlhodi) and R5 000 to R10 000 (farm income). That Ramatlhodi could never have intended to pay the entire loan from his salary is clear: as late as 2004, Ramatlhodi grossed less than R60 000 a month. His net salary would have been well below FNB's R55 000 instalments.
The loan account fell further into arrears. In September 1997 cattle and implements were auctioned. When Angloplat made an offer of R3.2-million for the farm property in September 1998 it was accepted. The profit went straight to FNB, but the loan account was so far in arrears that FNB demanded Mogodi and Ramatlhodi pay a shortfall of more than R1-million. Mogodi eventually paid R375 000 and FNB let him off, but it sued Ramatlhodi for the balance. After the first day of the trial, in October 2000, FNB and Ramatlhodi settled. The details are not known.
On the available evidence, Mogodi's R375 000 brought his total contribution towards Ramatlhodi's farm to at least R675 000, and potentially much more. Did he get anything in return? Although the full circumstances are not known, Mogodi soon benefited from a casino licence. This is made problematic by the timing of the award and the dual role of Nthai, Ramatlhodi's defence advocate in the FNB matter.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Wednesday, August 21, 2002
Opposition hails Nthai's withdrawal
Opposition parties on Wednesday welcomed former Northern Province MEC Seth Nthai's decision to withdraw his nomination to succeed Public Protector Selby Baqwa, while the ANC warned that unwarranted attacks on individuals seeking public office would make the country poorer. Nthai was nominated by the ANC's secretary-general, Kgalema Motlanthe. "It's a pity he's withdrawn. He's an advocate and a well-learned man with reputable credentials," ANC national spokesperson Smuts Ngonyama said. The ANC leadership had not asked Nthai to withdraw in the light of the controversy surrounding his nomination. Ngonyama criticised what he said was "unnecessary and undue pressure" as well as "attacks for no apparent reason" on individuals who were nominated for public posts. "We don't have many good people. We have a number of challenges and we have to be very careful in the manner we treat those who are prepared to make sacrifices for our country. "Our country will actually fall short of high quality brains when a good person is attacked and his integrity questioned... It is not good for our country. We need to protect those who want to make sacrifices," Ngonyama said.
This did not mean negative issues could not be raised, but this should be done in a responsible manner. In his reaction, the DA's Hendrik Schmidt said sound minds had prevailed. "Advocate Nthai's decision to step down is a victory for democracy." A nomination from the ANC secretary general amounted to a directive from the party's leadership. "This creates a serious conflict of interests for the members of the committee appointed to independently assess candidates for such positions," he said. It was inappropriate to nominate former party politicians to institutions that required independence.
The Public Protector was such an institution and should be subject only to the constitution and the law, Schmidt said. "It must be impartial, exercise its powers and perform its functions without fear, favour or prejudice. This was echoed by the UDM's Jakes Maseka who praised Nthai for the "honesty he now has for the country".
Nthai's withdrawal came a day after newspaper reports questioned whether he was the right man for the job as he was allegedly embroiled in several controversies during his tenure as MEC. Nthai, a Pretoria-based advocate, was the first to be interviewed by Parliament's ad hoc committee on the appointment of a public protector on Wednesday. Less than three minutes in the hot chair and in reply to a friendly warning from committee chairman Johannes Mahlangu (ANC) that he would face "very difficult questions", Nthai announced his withdrawal.
Mahlangu said: "You are aware this is a very key position. The public protector is a person who has to protect the public..." Nthai replied: "I have been reflecting on my nomination and I have come to the conclusion that I will serve the country better if I am left where I am and therefore I am withdrawing my nomination." The committee accepted his withdrawal and asked for it to be formalised in writing.
Nthai told reporters that newspaper reports had not influenced his withdrawal as he had taken the decision at the weekend. "I have taken this decision on my own, taking into consideration my personal circumstances, as well as what I am doing at the moment." He also denied there had been pressure from within the ANC for him to withdraw. "I had wide-ranging consultations... I consulted my colleagues and some members of the judiciary and on the advice that I got from a wide range of people, I decided I should not make myself available."
Source: IoL
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