Cape Town - In response to the State Capture commission’s recommendations, President Cyril Ramaphosa last night announced a raft of reforms, including tweaks on procurement processes, lifestyle audits of himself and his Cabinet, and two more commissions.
Ramaphosa on Saturday submitted to Parliament a 76-page response to the Zondo commission recommendations.
“The submission of this response is a firm and clear indication of the primacy of the rule of law and a demonstration of our democratic system at work,” Ramaphosa said.
He announced the establishment of another commission for Prasa and a permanent anti-corruption commission.
On reforms to prevent a repeat of state capture, Ramaphosa said: “Because state capture consisted of the simultaneous compromising of several entities across government, and because this weakened and undermined critical components of the systems of administrative accountability, law enforcement and institutional checks and balances, technical improvements in existing rules within the executive will not by themselves prevent a recurrence of state capture.
“Much more needs to be done to prevent a future occurrence of state capture.”
He said state capture exposed “vulnerabilities and deficiencies” in the current processes.
“The establishment of a further commission of inquiry into Prasa must be considered against existing initiatives that are probing the collapse of Prasa.
“There are currently investigations into Prasa by the (Hawks), which are at an advanced stage, and a wide-ranging probe by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) under proclamation 51 of 2019. The proclamation includes investigating governance and maladministration. The SIU’s mandate extends to making systemic recommendations with regard to an organ of state or state-owned entity,” Ramaphosa said.
He said when there are not enough trains to carry goods to the ports, power stations fail, national airlines collapse, it is the effects of state capture.
On intelligence services, Ramaphosa said: “We will implement all the commission’s extensive recommendations on intelligence services together with the recommendations of the high-level review panel.”
The commission recommended the establishment of a Public Procurement Anti-Corruption Agency and a Permanent Anti-Corruption Commission to have have oversight over both Parliament and the Executive.
On the weekend, former president Thabo Mbeki lambasted the current administration for “policy shortfalls”, which he said lacked in detail compared to a strategy document prepared by the business sector.
The ANC NEC, party leaders and MPs were not spared. Mbeki said some MPs didn’t bother reading bills such as the controversial Electoral Amendment Bill.
He said ANC individuals were asking branches to elect them without putting forward policy ideas.
“Our president is under pressure. I'm talking about President Ramaphosa. He’s under pressure around this matter about Phala Phala farm. There are criminal investigations going on.”
He mused on what would happen if the three-man panel set up by Parliament Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula to investigate Phala Phala found that Ramaphosa had a case to answer.
He said in one region, every party branch was led by a criminal.
Breaking an unspoken rule among SA presidents, former President Jacob Zuma on Saturday made several accusations against the incumbent.
Zuma said Ramaphosa was “corrupt and moonlighting as a businessman, which was unconstitutional”.