South African President Thabo Mbeki had established a precedent by dismissing Deputy President Jacob Zuma, official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Tony Leon said on Friday.
But he should now appoint a judicial commission of inquiry into South Africa’s arms deal — which was closely linked to the dismissal of Zuma — to include an investigation into the role played by Schabir Shaik’s brother, Chippy, in that deal.
Leon noted that the Joint Investigation Team report had already stated that Chippy Shaik, who was the Chief of Acquisitions for state arms company Armscor, did not recuse himself properly in order to avoid conflicts of interest.
”The most glaring conflict of interest was his brother Schabir’s bid for the corvette combat suite contract, through a shareholding in African Defence Systems.”
Leon said on Friday: ”Those of Jacob Zuma’s supporters in the African National Congress (ANC) who are angered by the President’s decision, and who believe he is being made to take the fall for the arms deal in order to destroy his political ambitions, should join the Democratic Alliance’s call for a judicial commission of inquiry.”
In his regular internet column, Leon said South Africa had crossed an important threshold this week. ”Before the events of 14 June 2005, corrupt public officials could expect to be let off the hook.”
He was referring to the axing of Zuma at a joint sitting of Parliament on Tuesday.
Leon noted that former ruling African National Congress chief whip Tony Yengeni, who was convicted of fraud in 2003, was still ”roaming free and even represents the ANC in overseas delegations.
”Truman Prince, the municipal manager of Beaufort West, has kept his job despite an ANC internal investigation finding him guilty of various misdemeanours. In truth, his six-month suspension from the ANC was little more than a slap on the wrist.
”And within Parliament itself, seated on the benches during President Thabo Mbeki’s address (on Tuesday) were several ANC MPs who have either been convicted of fraud or still face charges in the Travelgate affair, but who retain their positions and salaries.
”The Travelgate scandal, for example, involved R17-million of public money. In the Oilgate scandal, the ANC stands accused of funnelling R15-million of public money from PetroSA through the BEE company Imvume Management into its own coffers. Imvume then apparently passed on payments to relatives of cabinet ministers as well.
”A truly startling allegation was made this week regarding huge profits made by businessman Mzi Khumalo. With the aid of former Industrial Development Corporation CEO and current SAA CEO Khaya Ngqula, Khumalo reportedly took over BEE company Simane and sold off for R1,4-billion the shares Simane had acquired in Harmony Gold with Public Investment Commissioners’ funds.
”The money was allegedly moved into offshore accounts via Deutsche Bank. Khumalo, of course, aside from his MK-ANC background, will be remembered for running the venerable mining company JCI into the ground in a period of less than a year.”
Leon said it pointed ”to the dangers of the blurred boundaries between public office and private industry in South Africa today.
”The fact that so many politicians and public officials are able to jump straight into the elite echelons of the business world has led to cases of extreme self-enrichment and conflicts of interest that are not yet illegal but are certainly corrupt.
”Take, for example, the recent Telkom empowerment transaction. The 15% stake formerly owned by Thintana was sold to BEE investors including Andile Ngcaba, the former Director-General of the Department of Communications.
”Ngcaba could not afford the roughly R1,5-billion that he needed to buy his 2,2% stake in the company, so he had to borrow the money.”
Barely a month later, Telkom announced an annual profit of seven billion and revealed that it would pay investors a staggering dividend of nine rand per share.
”This allowed Ngcaba and his fellow investors to collect hundreds of millions of rands, almost overnight. Together with Gloria Serobe’s Wiphold consortium, Ngcaba’s Lion consortium will collect a combined R326,5-million in cash.” Ngcaba’s actions were not technically illegal, noted Leon.
”Yet they are highly questionable – especially given that Telkom has cut its workforce by half (30 000 jobs) in the past several years, and that Telkom’s exorbitant rates caused nearly a third of all the fixed lines it installed between 1997 and 2001 to be cut off.”
Leon said: ”We must live up to the standards that President Mbeki himself has set, both in dismissing Zuma this past week and in his strong words in Parliament against corruption earlier this year.” – I-Net Bridge