Hawks decline to act on suspicious payment to ANC Youth League

19 February 2019

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, or “Hawks”, have confirmed in a letter that they have declined to prosecute the former president of the ANC Youth League (ANCYL), Collen Maine, on charges of corruption.

In September 2017 I laid charges against Maine and Joe Singh from Just Coal, after the latter confirmed that R500,000 was paid to the ANCYL in anticipation of an extension to a coal contract with Eskom. The 2014 contract to supply Eskom with coal was terminated in 2016, despite this payment to the ANCYL.

In their letter to me, the Hawks state that there is “no reasonable prospect of successful prosecution” because there was no corroborating evidence to support the allegations that the R500,000 was paid to the ANCYL “to assist in receiving a further Eskom contract”.

But this only poses the obvious question: why would Just Coal give R500,000 to the ANCYL? And why would Singh lie about his intentions in making this payment?

Just Coal’s R500,000 payment to the ANCYL is reminiscent of the R500,000 paid by Bosasa to President Cyril Ramaphosa to support his campaign to be elected ANC president in 2017.

We now call on the ANCYL to do what Ramaphosa did: concede that the payment was dubious and pay it back immediately. Maine cannot claim ignorance of this payment as he personally lobbied Singh to contribute financially to the ANCYL.

The Hawks decision to let Maine off the hook is disappointing, but we will not allow this dubious payment to be swept under the rug. Indeed, Eskom is set to come under the spotlight at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture this week and Parliament will similarly focus on the “Eskom energy crisis” with my urgent debate on Thursday.

The DA will continue to fight State Capture and corruption in all its forms and with the same single-mindedness with which we are working towards building One South Africa for All.

Issued by Natasha Mazzone, DA Shadow Minister of Public Enterprises, 19 February 2019