Questions have been raised over how legal aid lawyers are paid in one of the country's biggest corruption trials.

    
Allegations of unequal pay, unpaid legal work and special incentives for some have rocked the Ministry of Justice, as the Fishrot matter returns to court on Monday.

The court ruled on a postponement application and the status of legal aid for some of the accused persons.

The Executive Director in the Justice and Labour Relations, Audrin Mathe, says the ministry will issue a formal response on Monday following concerns raised about Legal Aid tariffs and alleged disparities in remuneration between defence lawyers and prosecutors in the Fishrot corruption trial.

Dr Mathe was responding to questions from the nbc news after an anonymous letter surfaced, authored by a person who claims to be employed within the judiciary.

According to the letter, private lawyers appointed under Legal Aid instructions are paid in terms of the 2019 Legal Aid tariffs. 

These provide for N$5000.00 for the first day of trial, N$2500.00 for each subsequent day, and no payment for perusal of dockets, consultations, or trial preparation in criminal matters.

In civil cases, Legal Aid remuneration is set at 50% of the tariffs prescribed under the High Court rules.

The source said while these tariffs may be workable in ordinary criminal cases, they are inadequate for large and complex prosecutions such as the Fishrot matter.

The Fishrot case involves about 340 witnesses, more than 150 docket disclosure files.

Because Legal Aid lawyers are only paid for actual court appearances, the letter claims defence counsel are effectively expected to prepare for trial without compensation.

According to the claim, the situation has already resulted in several lawyers withdrawing from representing accused persons in the Fishrot case.
The letter further alleges unequal treatment when compared to other high-profile cases.

It claims that during the Caprivi treason trial, defence lawyers received monthly retainers of about N$80.000, despite mainly handling appeal proceedings for already convicted individuals.

The source also alleges that special salary incentives were approved for state prosecutors involved in the Fishrot case.

According to the letter, Advocates Ed Marondedze and Clive Lutibezi allegedly received incentives of about N$50.000 per month on top of their regular salaries, with Advocate Lutibezi's annual remuneration reportedly increasing from around N$850.000 to N$1.5 million.

Mathe did not respond to the substance of the allegations but said the ministry would issue a response on Monday.