Parliament yesterday wrote what is likely to be the final chapter in almost two years of political wrangling around the probe by the joint investigating team (JIT) into the multi-billion rand arms deal.

MPs voted to adopt all committee reports on the findings of the investigation last year by the auditor-general, public protector and National Directorate of Public Prosecutions, effectively ending its debate on the matter.

National Assembly Speaker Frene Ginwala told MPs: "We are coming to the end of what has been a period of painful debate in this parliament."

She suggested MPs and their political parties take heed of the lesson learnt.

Parliament, led by its watchdog public accounts committee (Scopa), first called for the investigation in November 2000.

Former Scopa chairman Gavin Woods of the Inkatha Freedom Party, said JIT's investigation was subverted, and its flawed report - unveiled in November last year - was of "unsubstantive quality".

This reflected the "cowardly betrayal" of the public, whose interests it was supposed to protect, he said.

From the start, there were moves by the government to weaken the investigation, beginning with the exclusion of the Special Investigating unit, then headed by Judge Willem heath.

ANC MPs in Scopa did a complete about-turn on their initial support for the nuit to be part of the investigation, while the auditor-general also changed his mind about the need for the unit after meeting President Thabo Mbeki and members of the executive, Woods said.

There had also been no communication between Scopa and the JIT, as the ANC had blocked every attempt at this.

The country was now left not knowing the full extent of the "corrupted process".

However, the truth would eventually emerge, and "those who betrayed this parliament and the people it represents" would eventually be punished, Woods said.

The Pan Africanist congress's Patricia de Lille, one of the first to blow the whistle on possible irregularities, said the ANC had fused the executive with parliament along party political lines, violating the separation of powers.

"This makes a mockery of parliamentary oversight. Parliament has become a lapdog of the executive, and not a watchdog.

"As South Africans, we put our faith in the judiciary to maintain the rule of law, as the other two arms of government have failed, she said.

Democratic Alliance spokeswoman Raenette Taljaard said the arms deal had shown up an "arrogant and unaccountable" government.

"It is the history of a process that exposed the lack of executive accountability to parliament," she said. "It is the legacy of prioritising the wrong nonexistent enemies and wars when the war on poverty and Aids is and should be our highest priority national emergency.

"We cannot fight poverty and Aids with corvettes, submarines, helicopters and fighter planes," she said.

Defence committee chairwoman Thandi Modise of the ANC said:"Parliament must make sure an acquisition policy and structures are introduced to avoid future problems."

It had a crucial oversight role to play in such deals, and should obtain comprehensive briefings on the price of equipment, to satisfy itself that such acquisitions were necessary.

Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin said "we have to accept" that those opposed to the deal would do all they could to ensure there was no closure on the matter.

"There are many zealots out there who will not accept anything that does not correspond with their views. This matter is unlikely to die down."

The three agencies of the JIT had weighed the evidence and made a finding. Some people would not accept this and unjustly criticised the agencies.

The government had not done away with social expenditure in favour of defence.

The evidence showed that the government was quite clearly meeting its social responsibilities and expenditure.

South Africa's defence force and defence industry would have been in dire straits without the new equipment and the national and defence industrial participation (NIP and DIP) industrial offset programmes linked to it. Erwin defended the offsets, saying the investments were on target.

Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said that after receipt of the defence package, the country would be able to meet all its escalating obligations and would be ready for any eventuality.

South Africa would have even greater peacekeeping responsibilities in future after the launch of the African union.

"It cannot be that at times we discourage defence expenditure, and yet when international obligations demand our participation, we expected a national defence force that is sufficiently equipped to respond".

With acknowledgements to Sapa and Cape Times.