Gerrie Nel has "no list" of cases he has to pursue, and AfriForum has given him "carte blanche" to decide which matters to prosecute.
Nel was interviewed on Radio 702 and Jacaranda FM on Wednesday morning. In the course of both interviews, Nel was adamant that he had no political agenda and no hit list of political cases he would be mandated to take on.
Nel announced his resignation from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on Tuesday morning, and will join AfriForum as head of its new private prosecutions unit.
On Wednesday, Nel said he would talk to anyone who approached the unit wanting to pursue a private prosecution, but that he could only take on the case once the NPA had decided not to prosecute. He said the unit could even advise people on what next steps to take, in the event a private prosecution was not possible.
He said that once a private prosecution was instituted, the normal court processes followed.
When asked whether he would pursue political cases, specifically charges against Jacob Zuma, Nel said he had been given a "clean slate ... carte blanche" by AfriForum to consider any cases that came across his desk.
Regarding the Zuma matter, Nel said it was premature to talk about it. He said everyone should be equal before the law, but that there was currently a process ongoing in the courts and that it should be allowed to run its course.
He also said he was confident that there were "unbelievable prosecutors" at the NPA who would carry on doing his work, and that he was confident in his juniors at the NPA who would take over his cases.
On Shaun Abrahams
Nel was asked whether he thought National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Shaun Abrahams was competent.
He said he was not part of management at the NPA and so he was not qualified to have an opinion.
He was also asked whether he celebrated the successful prosecution of former police chief, Jackie Selebi.
"Not at all," Nel said. "One feels satisfied that we did a good job but one doesn't celebrate. I think if you look at the matter objectively, from the outside in, it was sad. A lot of policemen supported him [Selebi]. It was sad."
He said he and his team went back to the office and began working on their next case.
Nel said in each matter he had prosecuted, justice for the victims was "worth millions".
"Every matter I've done, if the victims and the families of the victims thank you, money can't buy that," he said.