The Department of Home Affairs has insisted that the celebrity doctor Nandipha Magudumana’s arrest in Arusha was legal and that she was not kidnapped, as she claimed in court documents.
On Friday, May 19, Magudumana’s legal team reportedly filed an urgent court application to have her arrest and deportation deemed wrongful and unlawful in the Bloemfontein High Court. The matter will be heard on Thursday, 25 May.
As recently revealed by The South African, Magudumana is one of the suspects accused of helping and abetting a criminal to escape from legitimate guardianship.
Magudumana demands the undoing of her “apprehension, arrest, and abduction” on April 7 in Arusha, Tanzania, as well as her transportation to South Africa and local arrest.
In addition, the accused states that she wants to be released from the custody of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and that she wants the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court to set aside the ongoing criminal proceedings against her.
Motsoaledi stated during the briefing that Magudumana and Bester had been ordered to leave Tanzania within three days after being declared illegal immigrants. As a result, they were legally liable for removal to their home country.
Motsoaledi stated that the media informed them of the urgent court bid and found it shocking that neither he nor the Department of Home Affairs were listed as respondents in the court papers.
He stated, “I demanded that the ill-advised application be removed from the urgent roll,” and “The director-general immediately addressed a letter dated 21 May 2023 to her attorneys raising objection to the non-joinder of the DHA (Department of Home Affairs).”
