Zondo Commission state capture report: ball passed to Hawks and NPA

CAPE TOWN - The ball now falls on the Hawks and the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) court to act against those fingered in malfeasance by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, in his first report on state capture in the country.

Justice Zondo – who chaired the Judicial commission on allegations of state capture – made damning allegations against former president Jacob Zuma, former SAA board chairperson Dudu Myeni, former Sars national commissioner Tom Moyane, as well as former Transnet boss Brian Molefe.

Molefe has been referred to law enforcement agencies to conduct further investigations with a view of possible prosecution for fraud and/or contravention of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).

Justice Zondo found that Molefe had made a misrepresentation when he claimed that some of the contracts the state-owned freight and rail transport company concluded with Gupta-owned TNA Media, to sponsor business breakfasts to the tune of millions of rands, were in fact partnerships when they were passed off as sponsorships.

Several other high-profile people in various state-owned entities were also named in the report which confirmed that there was state capture while Zuma was president of the country between 2012 and 2016.

More damning were the allegations that SAA was looted for the benefit of Myeni and the Jacob Zuma Foundation. The report also chronicled how the Gupta-owned newspaper, The New Age, financially benefited from various state organs, including the SABC.

Myeni opted not to respond when contacted for comment on Wednesday.

The NPA remained tight-lipped on Wednesday on its next course of action while the Hawks said it was still early days.

Hawks national spokesperson Brigadier Nomthandazo Mbambo told Independent Media that the government’s anti-corruption task team still needed to study the report.

“The report was released only yesterday, it’s still early days and all anti-corruption task team stakeholders still have to go through it, identify elements that require investigation and by which entity. Only then will we know which cases will be allocated to the Hawks,” Mbambo said.

The commission also wants law enforcement agencies and the NPA to tackle malfeasance relating to Gupta lieutenant Eric Wood, businessman Niven Pillay and his company Regiments Capital, former Airports Company SA (Acsa) treasurer Phetolo Ramosebudi and recover the amounts Acsa paid to Regiments and the losses it suffered, in the interest swop contracts with Nedbank and Standard Bank.

The ANC, through its deputy secretary general Jessie Duarte, said they would support the government as it considers the report’s findings and recommendations and undertakes the work necessary to restore good governance and decisively tackle all forms of corruption within the state and across society.

Political Bureau