Pressure to act on those implicated in State Capture report
PRESSURE is mounting on law enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute all those implicated in the first report released by the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.
Commission chairperson Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo made damning findings against former president Jacob Zuma, former SAA board chairperson Dudu Myeni, former Sars national commissioner Tom Moyane, and former Transnet boss Brian Molefe.
Molefe has been referred to law enforcement agencies to conduct further investigations with a view to possible prosecution for fraud and/or contravention of the Public Finance Management Act.
Justice Zondo found that Molefe misrepresented himself when he claimed that some of the contracts Transnet concluded with Gupta-owned TNA Media to sponsor business breakfasts to the tune of millions of rand were in fact partnerships when they were passed as sponsorships.
Several other high-profile individuals in state-owned entities were also named in the report, which found there had been state capture while Zuma was president from 2012 to 2016.
More damning was the allegations that SAA was looted for the benefit of Myeni and the Jacob Zuma Foundation.
The report chronicled how the Gupta-owned newspaper, New Age, financially benefited from various state organs, including the SABC.
Myeni opted not to respond when contacted for comment yesterday.
The commission also wants law enforcement agencies and the NPA to tackle malfeasance relating to Gupta lieutenant Eric Wood, businessman Niven Pillay and his company Regiments Capital, and former Airports Company SA (Acsa) treasurer Phetolo Ramosebudi.
The commission also wants the agencies to recover the losses Acsa suffered in the interest swop contracts with Nedbank and Standard Bank.
There are now calls for the Hawks and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to act swiftly on the allegations.
Yesterday, Outa CEO Wayne Duvenage said: “This is what South Africa has been waiting for and now it’s over to the law enforcement agencies to deal with the reams of content contained in the report.
“South Africans desperately want to see those who transgressed the laws or were involved in State Capture held to account and as much as possible of the money stolen recovered by the State. There should be no room to hide anymore.”
Saftu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said: “We expect a huge backlash from the thieves and the beneficiaries of the looting spree that took place in the South African Airways and its subsidiaries, and other public entities.”
Cope spokesperson Dennis Bloem said: “Now that the first volume of the report is out in the public, all that is left is to see our law enforcement agencies acting against all the criminals who have destroyed our economy.”
ANC deputy secretary general, Jessie Duarte, said the party would support the government as it considered the report’s findings and recommendations.
The NPA remained tight-lipped yesterday on its next course of action.
Hawks national spokesperson, Nomthandazo Mbambo, said: “The report was released only yesterday (Tuesday).
“It’s still early days and all anti-corruption task team stakeholders still have to go through it, identify elements that require investigation, and by which entity. Only then will we know which cases will be allocated to the Hawks.”