The man described as the main source for the ”De Lille Dossier”, which raised questions in Parliament over kickbacks in South Africa’s multibillion-rand arms deal, died in Cape Town on Monday morning.
A source close to the family said that Hassan Solomon, also known as Bheki Jacobs, died at the age of 46 after an illness.
Speaking on her way to his funeral, Independent Democrats (ID) leader Patricia said: ”It’s very sad. I knew he had cancer, but he was very young.”
He was ”the source” of the dossier that she tabled in Parliament in 1999, when still with the Pan Africanist Congress.
De Lille said his death would not affect ongoing attempts to resolve allegations of bribery and corruption in the deal.
”He has done a lot. A lot of information is out there that he is responsible for. He was just really protecting his country. He wanted to see his country succeed,” she said.
In the Pat’s Pen newsletter on the ID website, De Lille wrote in August: ”The De Lille Dossier, which was tabled in Parliament in September 1999, has already led to the successful prosecution of Tony Yengeni and Schabir Shaik, as well as charges being brought against African National Congress [ANC] president Jacob Zuma,” she wrote.
Yengeni, who was ANC chief whip, was found to have defrauded Parliament by not declaring a discount he received from one of the companies involved in the deal.
Shaik was convicted of facilitating a bribe for Zuma, from arms company Thint, while he was Zuma’s financial adviser, and the National Prosecuting Authority then moved on to Zuma, now the ruling party president.
The arms deal and the possible prosecution of Zuma have dominated South African politics for several years and the ANC and its alliance partners, the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party, insist the case against Zuma is political.
Zuma is tipped to become the next president in 2009, but there are concerns that he may be inaugurated with criminal charges hanging over him.
Solomon leaves two children. — Sapa