Magashule’s ex-PA says state is punishing her ‘for not cooperating’

Moroadi Cholota, the former personal assistant of Ace Magashule, says she is being punished for her decision not to be a witness in the case related to the R255 million Free State asbestos tender.

Cholota appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Monday for the first time following her extradition from the United States (US), where she was studying.

She stands accused of facilitating corrupt financial transactions on behalf of Magashule.

Her charges fall under schedule five offences of the Criminal Procedure Act.

‘I am not guilty’

State prosecutor Johan de Nysschen told the court on Monday that Cholota would be accused number 17 in the trial, which has been set for 15 April to 23 June 2025.

De Nysschen also confirmed that the state would oppose her release on bail.

Advocate Loyiso Makapela, representing Cholota, read out her client’s affidavit, which disclosed that Cholota plans to plead not guilty.

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The affidavit also outlined the reasons supporting her request for bail.

“I submit that it is in the interest of justice that I be released from detention at the earliest possible opportunity.

“While I appreciate the seriousness of the charges that have been levelled against me, I wish to state right at the outset that I am not guilty of any charges against me.

“I verily believe that the state will not be able to present any objective fact or provide any evidence that will prove that I engaged in fraud, corruption or money laundering,” the affidavit reads.

Not a flight risk

Cholota denied that she was a flight risk.

“I confirm I no longer possess any passport or any form of travel documents. I was transported back to South Africa on emergency travel documents.

“My passport was left behind in Baltimore, Maryland, and has not been in my possession since my arrest and detention in April 2024.”

She further said her family lived in Bloemfontein.

“The only relative beyond the South African borders is my 14-year-old son who I transported to Nigeria so that he could go live with his father, with whom I am no longer in a relationship.

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“His father is currently making arrangements for my son’s return to South Africa now that I have been transported back to South Africa.”

Magashule’s former personal assistant also pointed out that she was currently unemployed.

The accused said she believed the state’s case against her was “inherently weak”.

She argued that it was well-known that she wasn’t charged and would become a witness in the trial given her testimony before the State Capture Commission in December 2019.

Watch the court proceedings below:

Cholota alleges threats

Cholota revealed that she was interviewed by the police on two occasions in the US and alleged that she was threatened with being charged if she did not cooperate.

“There is no evidence that I never cooperated with the investigators. They felt I had not provided them with the information they were looking for and decided to charge me with fraud, corruption or money laundering.

“The charges against me do not arise out of any factual and objective evidence, but from a sense of wanting to punish me for not cooperating with the investigators and the prosecutors in the matter.

“I was never implicated in any wrongdoing related to the asbestos project in all of the investigations undertaken by various state agencies including the State Capture Commission, the public protector, the auditor-general and the Special Investigating Unit [SIU].

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“The law requires that the state prove the case against me beyond reasonable doubt. I am certain that it will fail to do so as it has no evidence that links me to any fraud, corruption or money laundering. I thus intend to plead not guilty in the envisaged trial.”

She assured that she would not evade trial, saying she intends to repair her “tarnished reputation”, restore her “good name”, and “prove my innocence”.

Additionally, Cholota highlighted that she has been detained for almost four months since her arrest in the US on 12 April.

“There is not a single of my accused that has spent longer than even a day in prison. They have all had their freedom and liberty respected by the state and have been released promptly on bail.”

The bail application has been postponed to Tuesday.