ANC must not be allowed to mothball Botha report
It appears that the ANC in Parliament is attempting to mothball the damning recommendations made by the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests regarding the conduct of ANC MP Yolanda Botha.
In September, Botha was found by the committee to have failed to disclose her business interests, and to have wilfully misled Parliament concerning kickbacks she received from a business venture.
The committee recommended that the National Assembly impose the maximum fine of 30 days' salary. It also recommended that the matter be referred to the South African Police Service, the Special Investigative Unit and the South African Revenue Service, for further action.
However, the report was this week referred back to the Ethics Committee, under what appear to be false pretences, on the basis of concerns that were raised about its recommendations.
These concerns seem to be without substance, given that there is a precedent for the sanctions proposed by the Committee. In August 2002, the committee recommended that similar action be taken against Winnie Madikizela Mandela for breaches of the parliamentary code of conduct.