Shamila Batohi defends NPA progress on TRC cases at Khampepe inquiry

Former National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Shamila Batohi said that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) made Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) cases a top priority despite the organisation being hollowed out by state capture.

Batohi told the TRC cases inquiry that when she took office in 2019, the NPA was battling low morale, limited resources, and instability in its top leadership following years of neglect and budget cuts.

She was testifying before the inquiry, which is probing delays in prosecuting apartheid-era cases and is led by retired judge Sisi Khampepe.

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However, Batohi has faced criticism for not doing enough to make meaningful headway in advancing these cases.

Batohi said she had implemented measures to deal with the matters.

"I was well aware that the NPA, that TRC matters had to be an absolute priority for the work of the NPA right from the outset. The NPA had been hollowed out by years of capture, neglected because of limited budget allocations, and the top echelons of the leadership had not been stabilized. So there were lots of challenges when I took office in 2019," she said.