Parliament to probe Gupta citizenship saga

THE naturalisation of the Gupta family is expected to take centre stage when the Department of Home Affairs appears before a parliamentary committee today.

This comes almost a week after EFF leader Julius Malema made public letters that showed apparent interference by Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba in the granting of citizenship to the business family.

The letters in question showed that Gigaba, as thenHome Affairs minister, overruled a senior official’s refusal to grant the Gupta family citizenship when they did not have five years’ physical residence in the country.

Gigaba has since defended his actions, saying he had used the powers granted to him in his previous post, but the EFF has threatened to approach the courts to have the Gupta citizenship reversed.

Gigaba has also cried foul, saying there is a campaign to tarnish his reputation and also attack his integrity.

Yesterday, committee chairperson Lemias Mashile said the committee wanted the department to give them the details.

“The matter is in the public domain. There are a lot of opinion-makers following what the EFF has said,” Mashile stressed. “We want the department to give their position on the matter so that we don’t continue to misinterpret things.”

Home Affairs director-general Mkuseli Apleni is expected to give full details when they meet the committee.

The DA’s Haniff Hoosen, who last week requested Mashile to summon Gigaba to account before the committee, said he was cautiously optimistic the department would come and defend their former political head.

In his letter to Mashile, Hoosen had stated that he was concerned the Guptas received preferential citizenship from Gigaba when they did not qualify to become South African citizens.

Hoosen further said he had yet to receive a response from Mashile on his request.

“The letter was sent to him the same day I issued the press statement. I still have to hear from the chairperson,” he said.