Arms Deal “findings” no surprise and utter waste of taxpayers’ money – Original whistleblower, Patricia de Lille

21 April 2016

As the original whistleblower, I am not surprised at the findings of the Seriti Commission.

With due respect to Judge Willie Seriti, this outcome was decided long before the Commission started and Judge Seriti only had to design a process to get a predetermined outcome – to give President Jacob Zuma what he wanted.

This is an utter and total waste of time and taxpayer’s money.

Once again, these findings were designed to protect one man – President Jacob Zuma.

In 2009, Zuma was inaugurated as the President of the country with criminal charges hanging over him.

The “De Lille Dossier” which was tabled in Parliament in September 1999 has already led to the successful prosecution Tony Yengeni and Schabir Shaik and charges being brought against Zuma.

The Seriti Commission’s findings were designed to prove that former President Thabo Mbeki was not justified to fire Zuma while his comrade in arms, Schabir Shaik was found guilty and sent to prison - only to be released by Zuma soon after.

Shaik meanwhile is still very much alive while his partner in crime is roaming the streets of our country untouched while the evidence against Shaik suggests otherwise.

President Zuma must go now.

If he thinks that because it is nearly 17 years later and that we have forgotten, then he is sadly mistaken.

This is now one of many clouds hanging over President Zuma’s head.

We all knew from the beginning that this Commission was a whitewash.

I now put my faith in the independence of our judiciary where the North Gauteng High Court must still rule on whether President Zuma must be charged for more than 750 counts of corruption related to the Arms Deal.

Issued by Patricia de Lille, 21 April 2016