Mantsha had addressed the inquiry after Norman successfully applied for the postponement of Hogan and current public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan successor Pravin Gordhan.
Following the application, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo postponed the hearing to November 12 for Hogan’s testimony and November 15 for Gordhan. This to allow for their statements to be provided to those they implicated and for implicated parties to have time to seek to cross-examine these witnesses.
“In the circumstances, it seems appropriate to me that there should be an adjournment,” Zondo said.
Mantsha raised a number of complaints about how Zuma had been provided with notices that he was implicated by Hogan’s testimony, pointing out that Zuma had been served with a notice that he was implicated by Hogan’s testimony in August.
Hogan then filed a second statement on Monday, while Gordhan has only filed a draft statement by email. Under the rules of the Zondo Commission, anyone implicated in these statements need to be provided with them and given two weeks to indicate whether they will seek to cross-examine.
Mantsha questioned why Zuma’s lawyers had not been provided with Hogan’s latest statement, which has been described as an expanded version of her first statement and fills a full lever arch file.
He asked what the status of this statement was and questioned the fairness of the former president being asked to respond to multiple statements from the same witness.
The commission previously led the evidence of then Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene, despite his statement not being provided to those he implicated. At the conclusion of Nene’s testimony, the inquiry’s legal team indicated that they would furnish those people implicated by him with his statement, and they would be given the chance to cross-examine him.