Publication: Sapa Issued: Cape Town Date: 2007-03-22 Reporter: Sapa

FF Plus Renews Call for Arms Deal Probe

 

Publication 

Sapa
BC-ARMS-2ND-LD-LEKOTA

Issued

 Cape Town
Date

2007-03-22

Reporter

Sapa

 

The Freedom Front Plus has renewed its call for a fresh investigation into certain aspects of the controversial multi-billion rand arms deal.

The party wants the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), and German prosecutors, to probe whether "any promises were made *1" prior to arms deal contracts being finalised and signed, to any of the 29 people on a list who received discounts on vehicles from the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS).

"If that is the case, it is corruption," FF Plus spokesman Pieter Groenewald told a media briefing at Parliament on Thursday.

Earlier this week, Groenewald said the list of names was well known, having been published in the media early in 2003.

He said Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota had "confirmed" the names in an answer to a question he posed in Parliament, on March 19, 2003.

However, Lekota's spokesman Sam Mkhwanazi repeated on Thursday that the minister did not release the names on the list.

"The minister has never released any names to Parliament," Mkhwanazi told radio news programme AM Live.

According to the official Hansard transcript, Groenewald asked Lekota whether any members of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) had received discounts on vehicles from a certain company [EADS] and what the details were.

Lekota replied: "Yes. I have a list available, which was published in the press, listing all those persons who bought motor vehicles at a discount and what that discount amounted to."

On Thursday, Groenewald maintained that with this answer, Lekota had confirmed the names.

It was true Lekota had not released the list, but "he confirmed it. That is enough", Groenewald said.

The FF Plus had decided to provide the list to the media on Tuesday, because of the current speculation about who was on it, and as a reminder that it was not new.

Groenewald said Lekota had been fully aware of the list since 2003 and had "done nothing about it".

Hence the FF Plus renewed its call for an investigation.

The names included those of the former head of the Defence Force, General Siphiwe Nyanda, the former head of the Air Force, General Roelf Beukes, and the former executive chairman of Armscor, Llew Swan.

These people, and others on the list, had key positions and played a key role in awarding contracts.

"It could rightly be asked whether these favours had not already been promised before the awarding of the contracts. If it turns out to be so, it boils down to corruption," Groenewald said.

Independent Democrats leader Patricia de Lille on Wednesday laid criminal charges against the 29 people on the list.

She told AM Live on Thursday that the allegations first arose in 1999. The 29 names were published in a newspaper in 2001 and Lekota had confirmed the names were out in the public in 2003, she said.

Asked if the defence ministry would investigate the matter, Mkhwanazi replied: "De Lille has taken the matter where it belongs -- the matter must be investigated. If anyone has done something wrong then the law must take its course."

De Lille said former ANC chief whip Tony Yengeni's case had set a precedent, and she queried why he had been the only one prosecuted in the matter.

NPA spokesman Panyaza Lesufi said it was unfair to say that the NPA had dragged its feet over the matter, following De Lille's accusation that the agency had moved slowly.

The NPA, the Public Protector and the Auditor-General had met last Thursday to discuss whether the allegations deserved a joint investigation.

It was decided that each government agency would investigate the matter separately.

Asked why legal action had been taken only against Yengeni, Lesufi replied that the NPA had investigated the allegations.

"After the NPA made its own investigation, analysed the information at its disposal, it felt that it wouldn't be appropriate and correct to proceed with any form of prosecutions." *2

The NPA would deal with the matter "as quickly as possible" once it was received after the police investigation.

With acknowledgement to Sapa.


*1       In general corruption theory, there are pleases and there are thank yous.

In modern South African legal theory, both pleases and thank yous are criminal offences.

The cars were given before the contracts were signed and were therefore pleases.

The pleases were not actually to secure any one particular contract, the were given to many of the Arms Deal main roleplayers by EADS on behalf of the German Strategic Alliance to firstly soften up the decision-making establishment to approve in principle the acquisition of the entire range of new equipment and secondly to please the way for the specific acquisition of the following German equipment :
*2      The public are entitled to the precise and detailed reasons.