Deputy President Jacob Zuma says he has no knowledge of anyone's involvement in the editing of the final report on South Africa's controversial arms deal which will see the air force and navy re-equipped with aircraft and corvettes.

The report into alleged irregularities into the R60-billion arms deal was presented to Parliament in 2001 by three state agencies - the public protector, the auditor general and the national director of public prosecutions .

Responding to a question from Raenette Taljaard, Democratic Alliance finance spokesperson, Zuma said: "I am sure if the member is well informed she will have to help me to give me that information which indicates that there are people who changed the report."

He said when reports of this kind were drawn up, comments were made "and on that basis the final report is done... that is the process I think that was followed".

"If there is such an official who did so with the aim of protecting others... that information is very necessary so we can follow it."

Taljaard said during question time in the National Assembly: "Revelations today have shown that the Cabinet... played a role in an extensive editing of the draft report of the arms investigation and made specific changes and alterations -- some of which served to protect officials of the Department of Defence who misled the standing committee on public accounts in October 2000 in respect of (the arms company) Thales's involvement with African Defence Systems and conflicts of interest in respect of the Shaik brothers."

Business Day reported that Chippy Shaik, the former arms procurer denied a connection between African Defence Systems - a company now part owned by his brother Schabir - had a connection with French arms giant Thomson International although an earlier report indicated that Thomson had bought 50% of shares as early as April 1988.

Taljaard said to Zuma: "These revelations come in a context where there are still, despite your numerous denials, unresolved questions about your own involvement with Thales in this sordid saga… (this has) emerged within days of the disgraceful non-disclosure of private interests by the Minister of Defence (Mosiuoa Lekota)."

The Mail and Guardian reported on Friday that the defence minister acknowledged interests in a liquor company and an oil company which he did not disclose to the parliamentary register of members' interests.

Zuma has repeatedly denied allegations that he tried to solicit a R500 000 bribe from the former South African head of Thales, Alain Thetard.

Zuma said: "I think there is a process in any sensible country that is followed; charges are brought and people taken to court. With regard to myself I don't deal with rumours. How can you answer rumours?"

But Taljaard retorted: "When will this Cabinet learn that it has a specific responsibility in any moral regeneration movement and must lead from the front?"

Other parties also added their dissatisfaction with the debacle.

Inkatha Freedom party finance spokesperson Gavin Woods, who resigned as public accounts chairperson in protest at what he viewed as the poor investigation report into the arms deal, said in a statement that "for a full year a few of us in Parliament fought to have the truth revealed about the arms deal".

The former public accounts chairperson added that South Africa was only now beginning to gain access to information about the multi-billion rand arms deal which the auditor general has long sought to keep from the public and from Parliament.

"As other sections of the original draft report and other emerging evidence becomes available - as it no doubt will - the real levels of irregularity which pervaded the arms deal and cost the South African taxpayer many extra billions of rands will become clear," Woods said.

"As such, members of the executive, the Speaker, the ANC (African National Congress) whippery and ANC members of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) will have much to answer for."

Auditor General Shauket Fakie told Business Day, however, that taken as a whole and not considering only selective parts of it, the draft report and the final report on the deal conveyed the same message.

"For those aspects, which were not included in the final report, there were good reasons for including these ... It was part of our review process where, in our view, matters that lacked adequate evidence or had to be further followed up by the national director of public prosecutions for further possible criminal investigation were left out of the final report."

The Business Day article stated that the final report omitted a section titled "inaccuracies in the presentation to Scopa".

This included Shaik's claim that the winning contractor, African Defence Systems, had no connection to French arms giant Thomson when the contract was awarded.

With acknowledgements to Donwald Pressly and the Mail and Guardian.