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DA: Arms deal political football
16/03/2008 23:33 - (SA)
Johannesburg - Opposition parties on Sunday repeated their calls for a judicial
inquiry into the multi-billion rand arms deal, in the wake of a report
that the ANC has urged President Thabo Mbeki to explain his involvement
in it.
They were reacting to a Sunday Times story that business magnate and
senior ANC leader Tokyo Sexwale made an "impassioned plea" at a meeting
of the party's national executive committee at the weekend for Mbeki
"to take the ANC into his confidence".
Mbeki did not attend the meeting, although he has the right to
attend as an ex-officio member. Settling scores
Democratic Alliance spokesperson on the arms deal Eddie Trent said it
was becoming increasingly clear that the issue was being used to settle
scores within the ANC's ranks.
For this reason, the DA repeated its call for Mbeki to appoint an
independent judicial commission of inquiry to thoroughly investigate
the deal and identify any irregularities or corruption committed by
government officials.
"The need to do is made even more pressing given that allegations
regarding the President's own involvement alleged in wrongdoing are
starting to mount," he said.
Trent said it was obvious that the motivation of senior ANC NEC
members such as Sexwale in demanding the truth about Mbeki's
involvement had nothing to do with a genuine desire to get to the
truth, but was rather a convenient way to settle long-standing
political grievances against him.
Sexwale stood against Mbeki for the ANC leadership in the runup to
the party's Polokwane conference in December last year, then at the
last minute threw in his lot with Jacob Zuma.
"The matter is of such grave importance to the future of the country
that it cannot be left to be used as a political football," said Trent.
"The only way to ensure that this happens is for the President to
act with dispatch and to appoint a judicial enquiry." 'Mabandla dossier'
United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa said the ANC would
do better to call for a proper judicial inquiry, so that the matter
could be laid to rest once and for all, than to probe the roles of its
own members.
He also said the government should hand over to the Scorpions the
so-called "Mabandla dossier" - a collection of documents which
reportedly shows that German arms giant ThyssenKrupp desperately
lobbied the South African government in an attempt to head off a German
probe into the arms deal.
German prosecuting authorities are probing claims that the company
bribed South African officials and politicians to land a contract for
warships for the SA Navy, and have formally asked the SA government for
help.
Holomisa said that handing over the dossier would allay fears that
those who had already been convicted for their role in the arms deal,
those under investigation, and "the Mbekis and others of this world"
wanted to dismantle the Scorpions in the belief that doing so would
make the arms deal saga disappear. Truth will out
Independent Democrats leader Patricia de Lille said the ANC telling
Mbeki to come clean on the arms deal stank of hypocrisy.
"The time has now finally arrived for the ANC as a whole to come
clean on the money it received in return for wasting billions of
taxpayers' money on arms," she said.
"The truth will eventually come out."
De Lille, who late last year told Parliament that the ANC received
at least R500 000 from ThyssenKrupp, said she had been "vindicated once
again" by revelations in the Mail & Guardian that confirmed her
accusation.
"As long as political party funding remains unregulated, the ID will
continue to work hard to expose the next deal that is designed to
provide dirty cash to the ANC to fund the next election campaign," she said.
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