Tony Yengeni's 4x4 became so notorious that he lent his name to a new South African slang usage - "Yengenis" are now luxury sports utility vehicles that, in the unforgettable words of the man himself, "go like a jet".

Yengeni was but one of more than 30 government bigwigs who got help from an arms firm, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS), in the form of generous discounts - but while he received the biggest discount, it can be argued that he ended up paying the most.

Back in 2001, under pressure from the media on one side and state investigators on the other, EADS admitted being involved in obtaining cars for politicians. It said it had helped about 30 VIPs in the previous three years to get vehicles. It obtained the cars from a linked company, Daimler Chrysler.

The discounts ranged from 3,28 percent to 47,83 percent. Eyebrows were raised even higher when it was subsequently disclosed that the recipients included Armscor heads Ron Haywood and Llew Swan, National Defence Force chief Siphiwe Nyanda and SA Air Force chief Ralf Beukes.

The trade and industry department's arms deal counter-trade director, Vanan Pillay, lost his job as a result of a R55 000 discount on a Mercedes-Benz, after he was found guilty at an internal departmental hearing.

The list of purchases included at least four luxury Mercedes-Benzes listed as being for Michael Woerfel, then managing director of EADS. This led to suspicion that the vehicles were earmarked for other recipients. It was also asked why Yengeni's wife, Lumka, received a car ordered by Woerfel.

It was not only ruling party MPs under scrutiny over the discounts. The Inkatha Freedom Party's Mandla Msomi was grilled by the ethics committee after disclosures about discounts he received on two vehicles.

Msomi was "redeployed" from parliament to his party's headquarters.

Then came disclosures about discounts given to National African Federated Chamber of Commerce members, but Daimler-Chrysler hastened to say they were not organised via a third party like EADS, but by itself.

The wabenzi issue extended to the presidency, with a report surfacing that Daimler-Chrysler allowed President Thabo Mbeki to "test drive", for a protracted period, a R2 million vehicle.

With acknowledgement to Chiara Carter and The Sunday Independent.