By Akani Nkuna
ActionSA has requested the Speaker of the National Assembly and Chairperson of the Justice Portfolio Committee to probe Justice Minister Thembi Simelane’s continued stay in office amidst allegations of corruption involving VBS bank.
ActionSA believes that if Simelane does not step down, she could interfere with any investigations considering the portfolio she heads up.
Also, there was an undeniable influence she had over the NPA given her position.
ActionSA Parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said that her response to the Justice Committee last week further muddied the matter and at times she appeared evasive. He told reporters that the party found it curious that Simelane did not make payments on the loan for four years, until the day the report about the VBS investment from her municipality broke, and subsequently made a series of payments amounting to R283,000 each in a space of four months.
“We believe that she needs to either resign or be suspended and appear before an independent investigation,” Trollip added.
Meanwhile, Deputy President Paul Mashatile reportedly said on Sunday that Simelane would give a full account of her report to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Mashatile reiterated that the African National Congress’s integrity commission would deal with the matter if necessary.
During her appearance at the Justice Committee, Simelane characterised the nature of the transaction between her business and VBS mutual bank as a “loan” which was brokered by Gundo Wealth Solutions.
However, the capacity in which Gundo facilitated the transaction raised eyebrows amongst the members of the committee because it is not a licensed financial provider.
INSIDE POLITICS
