UIF Bribe Scandal: Ramaphosa must Fire Nxesi and Launch SIU Probe into Godongwana & Nzimande Forthwith

8 November 2023

ActionSA will write to President Cyril Ramaphosa requesting that he task the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to probe the bombshell allegations that three Cabinet Ministers that serve at his pleasure conspired to solicit a staggering R500 million in bribes, with Employment and Labour Minister, Thulas Nxesi, prominently identified as the first among the trio which includes Minister of Finance, Encoh Godongwana, and Minister of Higher Education and Science and Technology, Dr Blade Nzimande.

If Ramaphosa is, at all, committed to this “renewal” he has been touting since his ascension to the Presidency, he must do the right thing and fire Thulas Nxesi at once and suspend the other two alleged conspirators pending the outcome of a further probe into their involvement.

Section 2(2) of the Special Investigating Units and Special Tribunals Act empowers Ramaphosa to proclaim and gazette an investigation of this nature and he ought to do so without further delay.

Thuja Capital CEO, Mthunzi Mdwaba, revealed that officials, acting on behalf of three Cabinet Ministers, attempted to secure a 10% kickback from the R5 billion deal, which involved the UIF and the Thuja 750,000 jobs scheme.

The resignation of the Director-General (D-G) in the Department of Employment and Labour, Thobile Lamati, in the wake of the revelation of the questionable billion-rand jobs scheme, underscores the shadow cast by this scandal.

The allegations against Minister Thulas Nxesi follow a series of revelations that reasonably reduce the scheme to nothing more than an elaborate attempt to defraud the South African taxpayer. This is both deeply concerning and disgraceful, especially when considering the crucial importance of job creation, given that South Africa’s unemployment rate stands at over 32%.

This latest allegation serves yet another glaring example of the deep-seated corruption that has permeated throughout the State with senior Ministers and officials entangled in this corruption, a fact underscored by the Zondo State Capture Commission Report.

Given the gravity of the allegations, ActionSA demands that President Cyril Ramaphosa, as the Head of the Executive, leave no stone unturned in investigating the allegations made against members of his Cabinet.

Issued by Lerato Ngobeni, ActionSA National Spokesperson, 8 November 2023