The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) withdrew more than 41 000 drug-related cases over the past three financial years.
According to a written parliamentary reply by Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi, the NPA enrolled 87 867 drug-related cases for prosecution between the 2023/24 and 2025/26 financial years.
While more than 41 000 drug-related cases were withdrawn after enrolment, Kubayi said the NPA does not keep centralised statistics on the reasons for those withdrawals.
“The National Prosecuting Authority does not keep statistics on the reasons for withdrawals in drug-related cases; reasons are, however, recorded in the dockets,” she said.
Kubayi added that the South African Police Service is responsible for arrest statistics.
The Western Cape recorded the highest number of withdrawals, with 23 125 cases withdrawn over the three-year period. KwaZulu-Natal followed with 6196 withdrawals, while the Eastern Cape recorded 4576.
Kubayi said 602 drug-related cases were discharged in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act, which allows a court to acquit an accused if there is no evidence on which a reasonable court could convict.
Despite the withdrawals, the NPA successfully prosecuted 13 234 drug-related cases during the three financial years.
The Western Cape accounted for the largest share of successful prosecutions, with 9538 convictions, followed by the Eastern Cape with 925 and Mpumalanga with 812. KwaZulu-Natal recorded 302 successful prosecutions over the same period.
In a separate parliamentary reply, Kubayi revealed that 1001 charges have been brought against absconding parolees since the 2017/18 financial year.
The NPA said historical data extending back to 2005 was unavailable because an electronic system to record the statistics was only introduced in 2017/18.
Since then, prosecutors have secured 976 convictions from the 1,001 cases. The highest number of cases was recorded in the 2018/19 financial year, when 189 matters were prosecuted, and 187 resulted in convictions.
In the current 2026/27 financial year to date, all 18 cases enrolled have resulted in convictions.
Cape Times
Nivashni Nair
iol.co.za