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DA receives more 'spytapes' documents

The Democratic Alliance has received additional documents that were part of the so-called "spy tapes", the party said on Wednesday.

"Some 25 or so documents were referred to in the record of decision given to us and were not part of the record," said DA federal executive chairman James Selfe.

The national director of public prosecutions was directed to give them to the DA.

"They have given us what they have been able to find, locate and source. There are some documents that we asked for that they can't find."

He said the DA's lawyers were going through the documents and would communicate with the State attorney if needed. Otherwise the documents would be used to start drafting a supplementary affidavit for the review.

The DA was handed the spy tapes last month after the Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the National Prosecuting Authority had to comply with a previous order to release the tapes. Zuma had opposed the move.

The recordings, internal memoranda, reports and minutes of meetings dealing with the contents of the recordings had to be provided.

The tapes, containing recorded phone conversations, allegedly reveal collusion between the former head of the Directorate of Special Operations (the now defunct Scorpions) Leonard McCarthy, and the NPA's former head Bulelani Ngcuka, to manipulate the prosecutorial process before the ANC's Polokwane conference in 2007.

Zuma was elected ANC president at the conference. Former president Thabo Mbeki had been a contender for another term.

The charges were dropped shortly before Zuma was sworn in as president in 2009. Then acting National Director of Public Prosecutions, Mokotedi Mpshe, said the tapes showed there was a political conspiracy against Zuma and so the case against him could not continue.

The Sunday Times published a compilation of transcripts from the so-called spy tapes after the newspaper was granted access to them by the High Court in Pretoria on Friday.

Selfe said the DA was still convinced that it had a case for review.

"We more convinced than ever that we have a case for review and that case only gets stronger the more documentation has been made available to us," he said.

The DA was hoping to lodge its affidavit for the review next week.

"We hope to be able to be in court roughly by March next year."

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