Ernest Mabuza
22 October 2009
Johannesburg — THE corruption trial of former police commissioner Jackie Selebi was postponed for a week yesterday when his advocate, Jaap Cilliers, asked Judge Meyer Joffe to recuse himself.
Although the reasons for the recusal request are not yet officially known, there have been a number of unpleasant exchanges between the judge and Cilliers since the trial began on October 5. In one instance, Cilliers offered to help Joffe find an annotation on a page, but Joffe replied: "I don't need your assistance, thank you." Cilliers waited a few seconds before shaking his head and saying: "I am flabbergasted by your remark."
Selebi's defence team will be likely to try to show that Joffe is biased against him. The court will hear the application next Thursday.
There was another heated exchange between Joffe and Cilliers on Tuesday, when Cilliers wanted the state witness, Glenn Agliotti, to confirm whether he had said what he was reported to have said in a City Press article.
The newspaper said its reporters saw a video recording of a meeting between Agliotti and National Intelligence Agency (NIA) officials on January 4 last year, when Agliotti allegedly handed former NIA director-general Manala Manzini a four-page sworn affidavit in which he denied bribing Selebi.
Joffe told Cilliers that in his questioning of Agliotti he was putting to him a statement from the press, and that a video would have to be found for that line of questioning to be allowed.
Cilliers persisted in putting questions to Agliotti, telling Joffe he was entitled to test Agliotti's credibility because Agliotti's initial evidence about being summoned to a meeting with NIA officials differed from what he said in the recording.
Joffe was not pleased with the way Cilliers addressed him and said: "Mr Cilliers, please remember you are addressing me and not the witness or anyone else.
"You are putting to the witness a statement in news which alleges it came from him. How much further can you take it than that?"
Cilliers replied: "I'm entitled, with great respect, to test (Agliotti's) credibility."
If Joffe agrees to recuse himself, the trial would have to start afresh.
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