Parliament looks at state capture issue

The official opposition has been calling for an ad hoc committee to investigate

HOME Affairs Minister Hlengiwe Mkhize has indicated that the Guptas are not the only family to have been given special treatment when they were granted early naturalisation in South Africa.

In a list sent to Parliament yesterday of people granted early naturalisation in South Africa, Mkhize named 22 individuals, including several Gupta family members, who were naturalised between 2012 and last year.

The naturalisation of the Guptas led to a huge public outcry and parties in Parliament called for former home affairs minister Malusi Gigaba to account for how processes were flouted to allow the speeding up of the process to naturalise the family.

In the letter to the Speaker, Baleka Mbete, Mkhize confirmed the process was undertaken by her predecessor.

“In terms of Section 5 (9) (a) of the South African Citizenship Act, 1995as amended, I hereby submit the names of the persons who were granted early naturalisation by the previous minister of home affairs,” said Mkhize in the letter.

This was from June 2012 to February last year.

It was before Gigaba was moved to the Finance Ministry in March this year during a cabinet reshuffle and Mkhize was appointed in his place.

Gigaba denied special treatment for the Guptas and said he had done everything by the book.

Gigaba and the Department of Home Affairs admitted they made a mistake in not informing Parliament about the naturalisation of the family.

However, they insisted nothing was wrong in granting them early naturalisation as it is allowed by the law.

In the list sent to Mbete, Mkhize confirmed that Ajay Gupta’s mother Angoori, his wife Shivani and his sons Singhala Kamal Kant and Singhala Surya Kant were all naturalised on May 30, 2015.

In the list Mkhize also named former Fifa secretary-general Jerome Valcke, who was granted early naturalisation in 2012.

Other people given early naturalisation included investors, business leaders, an academic, a top Korean diplomat and a church leader.

The Guptas have been in the spotlight with allegations of state capture and leaked e-mails implicating the family and top government officials.

Two committees in the National Assembly begin their inquiry into state capture tomorrow.

The portfolio committee on mineral resources will have its first meeting on state capture following an instruction from House chairman Cedric Frolick for certain committees to probe state capture.

The portfolio committee on public enterprises will also meet tomorrow to look at what it needs to do after its preliminary meeting a few weeks ago.

The South African Council of Churches, the State Research Capacity Project and the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) presented damning evidence to the committee last month, implicating top officials at Eskom in state capture.

The other committees tasked to investigate state capture are transport and energy.

These are set to meet in the next few weeks.

The official opposition has been calling for an ad hoc committee to investigate state capture in order to have a comprehensive probe.

President Jacob Zuma has said he is surprised by the multiple investigations in Parliament and is committed to setting up a commission of inquiry into state capture.

The ANC has also said it supports the establishment of an inquiry into state capture, but the party says this has to be done urgently.

Senior leaders in the ANC have called for those implicated to come forward .