THE GATHERING 2026: ‘No one is immune’ — NPA head vows criminal justice reset after Madlanga revelations

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is resetting its top anti-corruption unit following the explosive allegations made at the Madlanga Commission, while also promising to pursue officials implicated in wrongdoing and continuing the hunt for Gupta-linked assets.

Speaking at Daily Maverick’s flagship event, The Gathering, in Cape Town on Friday, 11 September, NPA head Advocate Andy Mothibi said the organisation was putting “tangible objective measures” in place to restore integrity, strengthen the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac) and ensure that no official was protected if evidence pointed to wrongdoing.

“We took over at a time where really the criminal justice system itself was being detected,” Mothibi said.

Mothibi, who took over as NPA head in February 2026, said the organisation was executing a reset project at Idac, which has come under intense scrutiny following evidence heard by the commission and the resignation of its former head, Advocate Andrea Johnson.

Following her resignation, several officials implicated in wrongdoing had been suspended, Mothibi said. He said that as part of the reset, an acting head of Idac, Advocate Ntuthuzelo Vanara, had been appointed, describing him as “a very credible man” whom he had previously worked with at the Special Investigating Unit (SIU).

Mothibi recalled that Vanara had previously refused a bribe, saying this was the kind of integrity the NPA needed as it rebuilt the unit.

“So we need a whole lot of those with that integrity,” he said.

‘None of us is immune’

Mothibi said the NPA was reviewing how Idac had operated, including allegations that management oversight had failed and standard operating procedures had not been followed. The Madlanga Commission had also brought to light allegations of “collusive conduct” involving officials who had already been charged, while other investigations remained under way.

He said the reset would not stop at officials outside the NPA, making it clear that prosecutors and police officers would also face scrutiny if evidence pointed to wrongdoing.

“I can assure you that we are going to pursue, and none of us, none of us is immune… If evidence points to anyone in the police, anyone in the NPA, across criminal justice system, we have to act,” Mothibi said.

For Mothibi, the issue goes beyond individual cases and speaks to South Africa’s long-running struggle with impunity, with evidence emerging from commissions of inquiry, including the Zondo Commission, as well as investigations by the SIU, showing how deeply the problem has taken root.

“It really just shows you the measure of impunity, people thinking that they’re untouchable,” Mothibi said.

As part of the reset, the NPA has established what Mothibi called a “clearing house” to scrutinise cases that were allegedly not properly authorised, or where procedures were not followed.

“All of those cases which were not properly authorised, were not properly taken in, and the procedures were not followed, will be identified,” he said.

An independent panel has been appointed to assist with the process, with Mothibi saying he had received a report this week that would be made public soon. The aim was to ensure that cases reaching court were credible and properly prepared, he said.

“We want to make sure that the clearing house ends up with cases that are really credible before court,” he said.

Mothibi pointed to the dismissal of former National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s Section 174 application as an example of a case that had survived an attempt to have it discharged before she presented her defence.

The Gupta brothers

The discussion also returned to one of the biggest unresolved questions from South Africa’s State Capture era: whether the Gupta family will ultimately face prosecution and whether assets allegedly linked to corruption can be recovered.

The Guptas have been accused of playing a central role in State Capture during former president Jacob Zuma’s administration. They have denied wrongdoing.

Mothibi said the NPA was continuing to pursue every available avenue, including international cooperation, to trace assets and hold those implicated in corruption accountable.

“We are unfailingly pursuing every avenue that international law can afford us,” he said.

He said the NPA was working with authorities in the United Arab Emirates and India through mutual legal assistance processes, while also making use of new international mechanisms aimed at tracing assets linked to criminal activity.

Mothibi cited Interpol’s Silver Notice system, which allows countries to seek information about assets linked to criminal activity.

“Interpol has now introduced what they call Silver Notice,” Mothibi said.

Beyond the commission

The discussion also looked at whether revelations at the Madlanga Commission would translate into meaningful change for people dealing with the criminal justice system, particularly in a country where overcrowded prisons, weakened crime intelligence and inconsistent policing continue to undermine public confidence.

Former Constitutional Court justice Edwin Cameron turned the discussion to sentencing and South Africa’s overcrowded prisons, arguing that the country had placed too much faith in lengthy prison sentences as a deterrent without addressing the failures that allow crime to persist.

“The first catastrophe was that we placed our faith in long sentences, wrongly, and that leads to part of the overcrowding horror,” Cameron said.

Instead, he argued, the focus should be on ensuring that criminals were consistently investigated, prosecuted, tried and sentenced.

“What does make a difference is having prosecutors and police pursue everyone, arraign them, try them and sentence them regardless of the length of sentence.”

Cameron also called for the rebuilding of crime intelligence, arguing that its deterioration had weakened the broader criminal justice system, because effective policing depends on reliable intelligence.

“Without effective crime intelligence, you can’t have effective policing. Without effective policing, you can’t have an effective” criminal justice system, he said.

He linked the deterioration of crime intelligence and other state institutions to political decisions made during the Zuma presidency, while stressing that his criticism was not simply political.

“My point is not a cheap political point. It’s simply that crime intelligence has been destroyed,” Cameron said.

‘Is this the type of punishment we want?’

The discussion, facilitated by Daily Maverick’s Caryn Dolley, turned to conditions in South Africa’s prisons, where overcrowding, gang violence and sexual violence remain serious failures of the correctional system.

Researcher and lawyer Rebecca Gore argued that being convicted of a crime should not mean being exposed to further violence while serving a sentence.

“If you have committed a crime, that doesn’t mean you should be in an overcrowded cell, subjected to perpetuating gang violence,” she said.

She described conditions in which 60 people could share a room built for 30, with one toilet, while sexual violence and rape remained common in prisons.

The bigger question, she argued, was whether the system actually worked, with greater emphasis needed on employment, education, healthcare and rehabilitation.

“What we find is that it doesn’t,” she said.

“It’s not good enough to lock him up and lock them up and throw away the key. Don’t tell me it’s a 20-year sentence. I want to feel safe,” Gore said. DM