An application by the National Prosecuting Authority for leave to appeal a ruling in favour of suspended national police commissioner Jackie Selebi has been referred for oral argument.

The Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein also ordered that the two parties must be prepared, if called upon, to address the court on the merits of the case as well, a court official said on Thursday.

The NPA was appealing a high court judgment ordering it to hand certain documents to Selebi so he could prepare for his corruption trial.

The NPA was asked to file five additional copies of the application for leave to appeal within one month.

Thereafter the parties must comply with the court's rules in filing their records and heads of argument, which meant that the matter could still be heard this year.

In February the High Court in Johannesburg refused the NPA leave to appeal against a ruling ordering it to hand over documents requested by Selebi to prepare his defence.

The NPA then petitioned the SCA directly for leave to appeal. The high court ruled in favour of Selebi when he sought access to certain documents, such as bank statements and a diary, to counter the charges of corruption and defeating the ends of justice he would face at his trial.

Selebi appeared in the High Court in Johannesburg earlier this month when the case was postponed to May 4 to allow for the tying up of loose ends.

High Court Judge Meyer Joffe ordered that when the parties returned to court on 4 May they should have fulfilled certain requirements.

These included the State writing to the SCA to ask it to attend urgently to its petition relating to documents it did not want to give Selebi.

The high court was expected to set a new date for the trial on 4 May. The NPA's view was that it had given Selebi what it was legally entitled to hand over.

Selebi claims he was being framed in an attempt by the NPA's investigative unit, the Scorpions, to avoid their departure from the NPA and amalgamation with the police under the department of safety and security.

In court papers Selebi claimed the NPA wanted to highlight the need for an investigative unit separate from the police.

The NPA said in a statement the Johannesburg judgment it intends to appeal raised significant constitutional and other legal issues, and it was imperative that it be appealed, as the NPA believed it had a real prospect of success.

Sapa

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