ANC not serious about investigating 'state capture' - Maimane

6 June 2016

Cape Town – Dropping the "state capture" probe meant the ruling party was never serious about the investigation, Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane said on Monday.

Addressing members of the media during the launch of the party's vision of a Fair South Africa, Maimane likened the dropping of the probe to being complicit in corruption.

"And corruption steals away opportunities," he said.

On Tuesday, May 31, African National Congress secretary general Gwede Mantashe announced that the party had decided to close an investigation into state capture, branding it a "fruitless exercise" because of the low number of submissions.

Former government spokesperson Themba Maseko was the only one to hand in a written submission, out of the eight who had originally complained to Mantashe.

"To say they are dropping the probe means they were never serious about investigating state capture or presidential capture," said Maimane.

He said the best government was one which would govern in a manner that benefited all South Africans. And that is where the DA's policies for a Fair South Africa came in.

The policy advocates for a country where every South African has an equal chance to get ahead, the party has said.

Policies towards a fair South Africa

"The reality for millions of people across our beautiful nation is that our society remains deeply unfair. The colour of our skin, and the circumstances of our birth, shape in the most fundamental way, the prospects we have for success in this life," he said.

Maimane detailed some of their policies aimed at achieving a "Fair South Africa".

These included accelerated land reform, broad-based black economic empowerment and speeding up delivery of title deeds to state subsidised houses.

He also reiterated the DA's stance on racism, saying the party would never put up with racism of any kind.

There were ways to deal with those who made racist statements, he said.

"But we can't stop there. We must produce programmes that ensure that we build a reconciled South Africa. You can't separate reconciliation from the discussion, because it's a project that we must still maintain."

This article first appeared on News24, see here.