North West businessman Suliman Carrim is seeking an indefinite postponement of his testimony before the Madlanga Commission, citing ongoing health concerns following a reported heart attack in April 2026. The commission, chaired by Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, is currently weighing arguments regarding Carrim’s compliance with its subpoena and his documented inability to appear.
Legal Arguments On Medical Fitness
During the hearing on 24 July 2026, Carrim’s legal counsel, Kameel Premhid, argued that the witness remains unfit to provide oral evidence due to a fragile medical state. Premhid stated that a treating doctor has formally described the businessman’s condition as dynamic and subject to frequent change, proposing that sworn medical updates be provided to the commission on a fortnightly basis.
But what the treating doctor says is that the position of my client is dynamic and it is subject to change, and that’s why one of the things that the treating doctor himself proposes is to account to the commission under oath once every two weeks to update the commission regarding the client’s position and whether he can or cannot testify.
Evidence Leader Challenges Mobility Claims
The commission’s evidence leader, Advocate Adila Hassim, strongly opposed the application for an indefinite pause, citing surveillance data that contradicts the claimed severity of Carrim’s confinement. Hassim presented geolocation and CCTV evidence to the commission, asserting that Carrim frequently leaves his medical facility for extended periods each day.
The analysis of the maps and the geolocation data and what they show is that almost every single day Mr. Carrim leaves the facility and that on most days he’s out of the facility for at least eight hours, sometimes longer which is what my learned friend was objecting to.
The testimony sought by the commission relates to Carrim’s alleged involvement in a South African Police Service (SAPS) Medicare 24 tender. Justice Madlanga has reserved judgment on the matter, and a formal ruling on the request for a postponement is expected to be delivered in the coming weeks.