DA delighted that Zondo Commission can begin its work

25 January 2018

The DA welcomes the release of the Terms of Reference for the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, as gazetted today.

We are pleased that the Terms of Reference are based on the recommendations of the State of Capture report, completed by the former Public Protector, Adv. Thuli Madonsela, and that the President has resisted the temptation to meddle with them.

While it is hoped that the Zondo Commission will be able to shed light on the influence that the Gupta family has wielded over the appointment of Ministers, state officials, and members of the boards of state-owned enterprises, as well as on the endemic corruption in our state institutions. In particular, we are pleased that the commission will specifically look into the President’s alleged role in State Capture and egregious violations of the Constitution.  However, we urge the Deputy Chief Justice to release interim reports to enable the relevant institutions of the criminal justice system to deal with matters as soon as prima facie evidence of criminal activity has been established.

For too long, the Gupta family has had a stranglehold over the South African government, and particularly over President Zuma.

Deputy Chief Justice Zondo must now immediately assemble his team so that it may begin its work without any delays. The Commission has a mammoth task ahead of it, which we trust it will be able to carry out without any interference and with systematic back-up from all relevant institutions. This also means that the Terms of Reference should not be amended or augmented except in extraordinary and clearly justifiable circumstances.

For years, President Zuma has been trying to frustrate efforts to hold him accountable. In addition to members of the Gupta family, we expect to see President Zuma and his son Mr. Duduzane Zuma summoned to testify before the Commission as they too have been directly implicated in the public protector's report, along with all others implicated including Cabinet members. The DA will follow the progress of the Commission diligently.

Issued by Glynnis Breytenbach, DA Shadow Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, 25 January 2018