The Pretoria Magistrates’ Court has charged former South Africa’s Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula with 12 counts of corruption and one count of money laundering.
Mapisa-Nqakula made her first court appearance after handing herself over to a police station on Thursday morning.
The parliamentarian was accused of seeking bribes in return for contract award during her time as defence minister.
She rejected the allegations, saying: “I do not have a propensity to commit crime.”
However, 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.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday that Ms Mapisa-Nqakula should be commended for taking the decision to resign.
“We should recognise that her level of integrity for our democracy has made her do this,” he said.
Last month, a special police unit investigating a corruption case raided her residence in Johannesburg.
The 67-year-old veteran of the African National Congress (ANC) party became speaker in 2021. Before that, she served as defence minister for seven years.
Ms Mapisa-Nqakula is accused of making several demands for money, amounting to $120,000 from the owner of a company to secure a tender to transport army equipment back to South Africa from elsewhere on the continent.
