DA wants new arms probe
2003-05-27 19:47
Cape Town - The Democratic Alliance is to ask parliament to urgently set up an ad hoc multiparty committee to investigate the multi-billion rand arms deal.
Addressing the Cape Town Press Club on Tuesday, DA leader Tony Leon said parliament had the power to question everyone involved in the controversial deal.
"It is very late in the day, but parliament can still redeem itself.
"Having being marginalised and deligitimised throughout the arms deal fiasco, surely parliament can finally reassert itself."
He suggested a new committee investigate the deal as the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) - the parliamentary watchdog committee that called for the initial probe - had been sidelined and weakened.
Leon said section 56 of the Constitution empowered parliament to call before it anyone involved in the deal, including auditor-general Shauket Fakie, former defence head of acquisitions Chippy Shaik and contractors whose conduct had been questioned.
However, it was President Thabo Mbeki, himself, who remained at the centre of the issue.
"Not only must he accept ultimate responsibility for everything that his government does, but he, when deputy president, was the government official responsible for ensuring Cabinet approval of the arms deal package.
"At the end of the day, the buck stops with the President," he said.
Fakie - whose office, with the public protector and national directorate of public prosecutions, investigated the deal - has been accused of allowed the probe's final report to be edited to omit vital information.
Media reports have highlighted discrepancies between draft reports and the final document that was presented to parliament in November 2001.
In a statement, the AG dismissed the allegations, saying the draft and final reports had not been closely studied and compared.
"This irresponsible behaviour has led to inaccuracies being published, and a biased, unfair cloud of suspicion being created against the auditor-general and his office."
Fakie said he was prepared to defend himself in court as "this is the proper forum for these issues to be aired".
- SAPA