Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula: South Africa parliament speaker charged with 12 counts of corruption

South Africa’s ex-Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has been charged with 12 counts of corruption and one count of money laundering.

She made her first court appearance after handing herself over to a police station on Thursday morning.

The politician is accused of soliciting bribes in return for awarding contracts during her time as defence minister.

She denied any wrongdoing in court and said: “I do not have a propensity to commit crime.”

But prosecutor Bheki Manyathi told Pretoria Magistrates’ Court there was “ample evidence” against Ms Mapisa-Nqakula.

She has been released on bail.

After weeks of investigations, Ms Mapisa-Nqakula resigned on Wednesday, but said this wasn’t an “indication or admission of guilt”.

She said given the “seriousness” of the probe she could not continue her role.

Last month a special police unit raided her Johannesburg home in connection with the corruption investigation.

The 67-year-old veteran of the anti-apartheid struggle became speaker in 2021. Before that, she served as defence minister for seven years.

Last week, Ms Mapisa-Nqakula’s lawyers filed a request for a court order to prevent her arrest, saying it would infringe on her dignity.

On Tuesday, judges rejected her bid on the basis that the matter was not urgent and they could not speculate on an arrest that was yet to happen.

Ms Mapisa-Nqakula is accused of making several demands for money, amounting to $120,000 (£96,000), from the owner of a company to secure a tender to transport army equipment back to South Africa from elsewhere on the continent, the Business Day newspaper reports.

The resignation comes ahead of next month’s general election, which some believe could be difficult for the governing African National Congress (ANC).

The party, which has been in power since 1994, has faced repeated allegations of corruption and mismanagement of public funds, which have become a key election issue.