Deputy President Jacob Zuma denies knowledge of top-level interference

The furore over SA's controversial R60bn arms deal exploded back into the open yesterday, as opposition political parties called for a new probe into claims of impropriety following revelations that the report on an earlier official investigation was heavily edited before it was made public.

A deepening shadow of allegations is threatening to engulf the highest reaches of government, after Business Day yesterday published details of apparently significant omissions in the final report on an investigation by Auditor-General Shauket Fakie.

The publication of details of an earlier draft report confirmed long-held suspicions by opponents of the arms procurement exercise that changes were made before publication, possibly at the instance of senior members of government.

Deputy President Jacob Zuma, who himself faces allegations in respect of the arms deal, faced questions in Parliament on the new revelations yesterday. Denying knowledge of top-level interference, he cautiously undertook that action would be taken if new information came to light.

Responding to questions by Democratic Alliance MP Raenette Taljaard, Zuma said: "I am sure that if the honourable member is well informed, she will have to help me to give me that information which indicates that these are the people who changed the report so that we can deal with the matter," he said.

Taljaard called for a full parliamentary debate, saying changes to the report "served to protect officials of the department of defence, who misled the standing committee on public accounts in October 2000".

One of the omissions from the final report details "inaccuracies" in the department's presentation to the committee.

IFP MP Gavin Woods, who was the committee's chairman at the time of the department's presentation referred to by Taljaard, said the new information confirmed suspicions of "inappropriate associations" between Fakie and members of the cabinet.

With regard to revelations that certain key players in the arms deal had received gifts, the Scorpions special investigations unit said yesterday its investigations had not yet been completed. The unit, in keeping with its stance on continuing investigations, declined to say who was being investigated. It recently refused to confirm that it was investigating Zuma after allegations surfaced that he had attempted to solicit a R500000 bribe from Alain Thetard, the former southern African head of arms company Thompson-SCF (now Thales).

Taljaard said that despite the Scorpions' assertion that investigations were continuing, "nothing more has come out of the Scorpions since the arrest of former chief whip Tony Yengeni and Schabir Shaik, despite indications by director of public prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka that more arrests were imminent".

With acknowledgements to Tim Cohen, Wyndham Hartley, Chantelle Benjamin, Sapa and the Business Day.