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Questions raised about whether the payments were for dirt on Mpumalanga’s former premier
Prominent lawyer Ian Small-Smith has been drawn into the high-stakes battle between ANC heavyweights Mathews Phosa and David Mabuza, with accusations that he made payments totalling R15 000 to Phosa’s former butler.
The payments are alleged to have been in return for the butler, Jan Venter, dishing out dirt on the former ANC treasurer-general.
Phosa and Mabuza, who are the two most powerful men in Mpumalanga politics and who play influential roles on the national stage, have been at loggerheads over a secret report that alleges Mabuza was a spy. Phosa handed the report to Luthuli House last year.
Venter made headlines when he made sensational claims that he had seen Phosa authoring a false intelligence document accusing Mabuza, the current Mpumpalanga premier, of having been an apartheid spy.
This week Phosa and his former butler kissed and made up. Now Venter claims Small-Smith, who counts Czech fugitive Radovan Krejcir and the killers of mining magnate Brett Kebble among his high-profile clients, deposited the money into his Absa bank account between May and October 2015.
Bank statements belonging to Jan Venter, which show payments that were made into his account by lawyer Ian Small-Smith
But Small-Smith has denied that the payments were made to obtain dirt on Phosa.
Venter claims Mabuza used the breakdown in employment relations between him and Phosa to use him (Venter) as a pawn.
City Press is in possession of Venter’s bank account statements that show that the first transaction of R2 000 was made on May 25. Small-Smith then deposited R10 000 into Venter’s account on August 4 and another R2 000 on September 9. The final deposit of R1 000 was made on October 6.
Venter alleged Small-Smith was acting on behalf of Mabuza and that the two met for the first time at the premier’s residence, two months after the report first became public. He said Mabuza introduced Small-Smith as his lawyer.
“After the arrival of this man, who was introduced to me by Mr Mabuza as his lawyer, [Small-Smith] said: ‘I heard you worked for the Phosa family and that you overheard many things ... Tell me your story,’” wrote Venter.
He said the two promised him he could get protection against Phosa from the State Security Agency. He said he was promised that charges of theft of a flash drive, laid by Phosa against him, would also be dealt with.
Venter said Small-Smith had paid his personal expenses as well as legal fees.
“I was asked on numerous occasions to send [text messages] asking for money so that they could be declined … I saved the [messages] … This was merely a way of covering tracks…” said Venter.
Small-Smith told City Press he made payments to Venter because the former butler had asked him for money to buy food and nappies for his babies, and also needed assistance to fight criminal charges Phosa had laid against him.
“The assistance I gave Venter had nothing to do with any client, institution or law enforcement agency I had previously advised or discussed the false spy report with. I have records of all assistance I offered to Venter and correspondence that led to my assistance,” said Small-Smith.
He said when he met Venter late last year, Venter had already warned Mabuza that Phosa would release the spy report. “He also wanted to provide me with evidence concerning Phosa’s personal life, the amount of money spent on the Phosa residence and [alleged] thuggery and torture committed by Phosa’s security team. I was only concerned about what Venter had to say about Phosa’s involvement in the creation of the false spy report,” said Small-Smith.
Phosa told City Press he once hired Small-Smith to represent him in a defamation suit. He said that when he learnt of the payments to Venter, he tried to contact Small-Smith. “As a colleague, I wanted to meet Small-Smith. This is a thing we do as lawyers. Now I need to read all the documents before making any judgement call on a colleague.”
Mabuza’s spokesperson, Zibonele Mncwango, could not clarify if Small-Smith had acted as Mabuza’s personal or official lawyer in deliberations with Venter.
“The [premier] noted with concern the public statements issued by Mr Venter and Mr Phosa. [He] prefers not to engage in public mudslinging and will allow the authorities to continue investigations against Mr Phosa to their conclusion,” said Mncwango.
Venter told City Press in March about how he saw Phosa and his business associate Nick Elliot drafting the report at Phosa’s Hazyview mansion before Venter resigned. Phosa submitted the spy report, which he claimed he received from a whistle-blower, to ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte last year in September. It alleges that Mabuza, along with former Vlakplaas commander Eugene de Kock and security policeman Butana Nofomela, once spied on top ANC officials Phosa, Jacob Zuma, the now late Albertina Sisulu and Angie Motshekga.
Mabuza has since instituted a R10 million criminal defamation case against Phosa and asked Zuma to institute a commission of inquiry into the allegations.
However, Zuma’s spokesperson, Bongani Majola, said Mabuza had not yet put forward the request for a commission of inquiry.
National police spokesperson Lieutenant General Solomon Makgale said: “We’ve taken note of the developments [Venter’s about-turn], and next week we’ll be in a position to say what we’re going to do.”
