The Democratic Alliance has written to President Mbeki asking him to answer questions about two encrypted faxes concerning arms deal tenders the party was in possession of.
”The first of these faxes gives the impression that the President assured Thomson’s executives (via Chippy Shaik) as early as 1997 that they would be awarded the combat suite contract,” said Eddie Trent, DA MP and spokesperson on the arms deal.
Trent said this implied the President had guaranteed Thomson the contract before the tender process was complete.
”I have asked the President to state whether or not such an assurance was given to Thomson. The second fax indicates that President Mbeki secretly met with Thomson executives in Paris in December 1998.”
Trent said if such a meeting took place it would constitute a violation of accepted tender processes.
”As Chair of Mincom (Ministerial Committee of Transport), the President was responsible for the final awarding of all the arms deal contracts.”
Trent said a meeting of this nature would have created an enormous conflict of interest for Mbeki and cast a dark cloud over the integrity of the entire arms deal process.
”I have asked President Mbeki to state clearly whether a meeting of this nature did in fact take place.”
He said he had also submitted parliamentary questions on this matter.
”However it is absolutely essential that the President responds directly to the requests in my letter as parliament will only reconvene in August.”
Trent said the information referred to in the faxes had been in the public domain for some time now.
”If further information of this kind keeps appearing on an ad hoc basis, it will be very damaging for the President and the country.
”Unless the President takes the nation into his confidence and answers the questions I have posed, there will be reason to believe that he may have something to hide.”
The French arms manufacturer on Friday denied that Mbeki allegedly indicated the company would receive a contract.
”We would like to strongly deny any such wrongdoing,” chairperson and chief executive of Thales International for Africa, Pierre Moynot, said in a statement, adding that the two parties had not engaged in ”unethical behaviour”. ‒ Sapa