Duarte ‘very keen’ to explain ANC’s role in ANN7 and The New Age
ANC DEPUTY secretary-general Jessie Duarte says she is “very keen” to appear before the state capture commission of inquiry to explain the role the ANC played in the establishment of the Gupta-owned ANN7 and The New Age newspaper.
She said she was not afraid to testify on why the governing party backed the Gupta media empire, which controversially secured R260 million from government departments over the years, according to the Treasury.
“I am very willing to go and talk about meetings I held with (former New Age editor) Moegsien Williams. I have nothing to hide,” she added.
Briefing the media a day after President Cyril Ramaphosa accepted the resignation of Nhlanhla Nene as finance minister and replaced him with Tito Mboweni, she said the ANC was being dragged into the state capture allegations as if it was on trial.
She said while the party commended Nene’s voluntary decision to resign, it would not encourage people to follow his example once they were implicated as the commission continued. “I think it’s going to depend on the individuals and how they represent themselves and what they put to the Zondo commission and how that is understood, and what culpability might be inferred,” she added.
A number of Cabinet ministers face accusations of being enablers of the Guptas, who allegedly looted the state through their close ties with former president Jacob Zuma.
Duarte has also been drawn into another Gupta controversy after her son-in-law was appointed by former finance minister Des van Rooyen during his controversial four-day stint in the office in 2015. She said she was ready to explain this to the inquiry.