Maybe, but a South African civil case would not achieve the same objectives as a successful criminal case.  I would see the Afriforum PVT prosecution having two prime objectives. Firstly, to remove all speculation that the NPA are incompetent in deciding which cases to pursue, and secondly, to have at least one family member of the political elite held personally and directly accountable for their irresponsible and/or criminal actions. A final, albeit a minor objective for greater society, would be to pave the way for adequate financial compensation for the affected family directly from the accused rather than from the taxpayer and it is this objective that would have to be undertaken through a civil case, which would be much easier to justify if a criminal conviction is already achieved.