SAPS must investigate Malema, Shivambu and the EFF as an organised crime enterprise
19 July 2024
The planned and repeated fraud, corruption and money laundering offences allegedly committed by EFF leaders Julius Malema and Floyd Shivambu may meet the requirements for racketeering, as defined in the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA). That’s the crux of AfriForum chief executive, Kallie Kriel’s argument in the criminal complaint he filed today at the Sandton police station, asking the authorities to investigate the two politicians on a range of charges, and the political party as an organised crime enterprise.
Kriel’s affidavit refers to recent revelations made by Tshifhiwa Matodzi, former chair of VBS Mutual Bank, in his witness statement presumably submitted as part of a plea agreement. “This alleged criminal conduct should no longer be considered in isolation from the so-called ‘VBS scandal’ suspects, but should also include the suspicious, and in my opinion unexplored, accusations that point to the EFF political party as an enterprise, as defined in POCA.
“I submit that the publicly available documented information constitutes enough reasonable suspicion of the establishment of an EFF enterprise as determined by POCA and a history of planned, ongoing and repeated participation or involvement in criminal conduct by these individuals. This requires diligent and steadfast intervention by the authorities in a manner where they live up to the expectation that they will conduct their constitutional obligations without fear, favour or prejudice,” said Kriel.
POCA defines a “pattern of racketeering activity” as the “planned, ongoing, repeated or continuous participation” in any of the over 30 crimes listed in the law’s first schedule. These include corruption, fraud, extortion, and murder. To establish such a pattern, one needs to show that at least two offences were committed within a 10-year period and that they were related.