ANC to decide on graft officials
The outcome of the ANC s national executive committee meeting will be the highlight of the week as the future of the party’s secretary-general, Ace Magashule, hangs in the balance.
The issue of officials stepping down when facing official charges is expected to top the agenda at the meeting, which started on Sunday and is due to conclude on Tuesday. The party is expected to hold a media briefing later in the week.
In August, the national executive committee resolved that members formally charged with corruption or other serious crimes must immediately step aside from all leadership positions in the ANC, legislatures or other government structures pending the finalisation of their cases”. But the resolution has not been implemented.
The issue of stepping down has rocked the party as Magashule, one of its most senior leaders, refuses to step down from his position after being formally charged in a corruption case linked to a R255m asbestos contract signed during his tenure as Free State premier. He is facing 21 charges of corruption and fraud, and also theft and money laundering.
ANC MP Bongani Bongo also refused to step down despite facing corruption charges.
The ANC’s handling of the matter threatens to derail President Cyril Ramaphosa’s anti-corruption agenda.
In parliament, the National Assembly wrapped up its programme on Friday and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) will conclude its work this week ahead of a recess that runs until January 22.
On Tuesday, the NCOP will consider three tax bills: the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill, the Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill and the Rates and Monetary Amounts and Amendment of Revenue Laws Bill.
On Wednesday, it will consider the report of the select committee on appropriations on the proposed division of revenue and conditional grant allocations to provinces and local government, as well as the Second Adjustments Appropriation Bill.
In court matters, on Monday the high court in Pretoria will hand down judgment on the matter involving the so-called rogue unit at the SA Revenue Service (Sars).
The application was brought by public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan, after public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane found he had violated the constitution when he set up the unit at Sars.
The rogue unit was a narrative used as an excuse to purge senior Sars executives, as well as disband the tax agency’s executive committee when Tom Moyane took over as commissioner in 2014.
In another court matter, former president Jacob Zuma and his co-accused, French arms company Thales, will be back in the high court in Pietermaritzburg. They are facing charges of fraud, racketeering, corruption and money laundering relating to the controversial multibillionrand arms deal of the 1990s.
In a related matter, hearings on a complaint that Western Cape judge president John Hlophe tried to influence Constitutional Court judges in a case involving Zuma more than a decade ago are scheduled to start on Monday. The complaint dates back to 2008, when Hlophe was accused of trying to improperly influence retired judge Bess Nkabinde and judge Chris Jafta in a matter related to Zuma’s corruption case involving the arms deal.
The Judicial Conduct Tribunal said last week it will look into the allegations and submit a report of its findings to the Judicial Service Commission, the body that, among other things, deals with complaints about judges.
On Wednesday, the auditorgeneral will update the media on the investigation into Covid-19 relief funds.
On Thursday, the Solidarity Fund, set up to respond to Covid-19, will hold a news conference on its achievements since it started operating.