THE government threw the book at officials implicated in the so-called “Guptagate” scandal yesterday but insisted the cabinet was innocent of any role in the debacle.
Briefing reporters in Pretoria, Justice Minister Jeff Radebe said five people had been suspended for their role in allowing a private jet, bringing about 200 guests to the Gupta family’s four-day wedding, to land at the country’s main Waterkloof military air base.
He said a team of directors-general would deliver a full report on the debacle within a week.
Critics said the press conference was a damage control exercise to screen President Jacob Zuma and his cabinet from the fallout.
The wealthy and politically-connected Gupta brothers Ajay, Atul and Rajesh were celebrating the wedding of Vega Gupta, 23, to Indian-born Aaskash Jahajgarhia.
The wedding party left South Africa using commercial channels yesterday. Photographers at OR Tambo airport said several of them tried unsuccessfully to demand that pictures of them be deleted.
Radebe said the military attache at the Indian High Commission in Pretoria contacted an air-force unit directly after the defence department had refused to allow the Gupta plane to use the air base.
“The SA Air Force consulted with the Office of State Protocol and facilitated the clearance of the aircraft without informing the chief of the SANDF. There was no executive authority granted for the plane to land. We will get to the bottom of this . Someone must have authorised the aircraft,” he said.
Jet Airways was fined R80000 for landing without a foreign operator permit for the Airbus A330.
Radebe said the officials who were involved had been put on compulsory special leave. They were Chief of State Protocol Bruce Koloane; Officer Commanding Air Force Command Brigadier-General L Lombard; Officer Commanding Air Force Base Brigadier-General TS Madumane; Movement Control Officer, Lt-Col C Anderson; and Major-General Gela from the SAPS operational response services.
Two metro police officers and a reservist were arrested for working for a security company which provided an escort from the base to the wedding venue at Sun City.
Radebe said the black SUVs with flashing blue lights that escorted the Gupta party to Sun City belonged to a private company.
“A criminal case has been registered for illegally using the emergency lights and fitting false registration plates,” he said.
Radebe and other ministers at the briefing insisted there had been no “executive” authorisation for the landing, apparently screening Zuma and his cabinet.
Constitutional expert Pierre de Vos said it was possible that relatively junior officials had authorised the landing because the Gupta family was known to be close to Zuma and they thought it was the right thing to do.
“Not even the most gullible South African is going to believe that a plane with 200 guests attending the private wedding of a foreign national would have been allowed to land at an air-force base if the father of the bride was not financially entangled with President Jacob Zuma and his family,” De Vos wrote on his blog Constitutionally Speaking.
DA defence spokesman David Maynier called the press conference “an exercise in damage control designed to ‘firewall’ President Zuma and members of his cabinet from the political fallout.
“The key, repeated by virtually every minister present, was that ‘no executive authority was granted for the plane to land’,” he said.
Maynier said the internal investigation by directors-general would shield ministers.
“We need a full-scale parliamentary investigation... We cannot have a situation where responsibility is displaced to senior officials who are then hung out to dry in an effort to contain the political fallout,” he said.
The Gupta family has insisted throughout that the landing was properly authorised, but did not immediately respond to the government statements yesterday. — Additional reporting Sapa
Cabinet ducks Guptagate flak
Briefing reporters in Pretoria, Justice Minister Jeff Radebe said five people had been suspended for their role in allowing a private jet, bringing about 200 guests to the Gupta family’s four-day wedding, to land at the country’s main Waterkloof military air base.
He said a team of directors-general would deliver a full report on the debacle within a week.
Critics said the press conference was a damage control exercise to screen President Jacob Zuma and his cabinet from the fallout.
The wealthy and politically-connected Gupta brothers Ajay, Atul and Rajesh were celebrating the wedding of Vega Gupta, 23, to Indian-born Aaskash Jahajgarhia.
The wedding party left South Africa using commercial channels yesterday. Photographers at OR Tambo airport said several of them tried unsuccessfully to demand that pictures of them be deleted.
Radebe said the military attache at the Indian High Commission in Pretoria contacted an air-force unit directly after the defence department had refused to allow the Gupta plane to use the air base.
“The SA Air Force consulted with the Office of State Protocol and facilitated the clearance of the aircraft without informing the chief of the SANDF. There was no executive authority granted for the plane to land. We will get to the bottom of this . Someone must have authorised the aircraft,” he said.
Jet Airways was fined R80000 for landing without a foreign operator permit for the Airbus A330.
Radebe said the officials who were involved had been put on compulsory special leave. They were Chief of State Protocol Bruce Koloane; Officer Commanding Air Force Command Brigadier-General L Lombard; Officer Commanding Air Force Base Brigadier-General TS Madumane; Movement Control Officer, Lt-Col C Anderson; and Major-General Gela from the SAPS operational response services.
Two metro police officers and a reservist were arrested for working for a security company which provided an escort from the base to the wedding venue at Sun City.
Radebe said the black SUVs with flashing blue lights that escorted the Gupta party to Sun City belonged to a private company.
“A criminal case has been registered for illegally using the emergency lights and fitting false registration plates,” he said.
Radebe and other ministers at the briefing insisted there had been no “executive” authorisation for the landing, apparently screening Zuma and his cabinet.
Constitutional expert Pierre de Vos said it was possible that relatively junior officials had authorised the landing because the Gupta family was known to be close to Zuma and they thought it was the right thing to do.
“Not even the most gullible South African is going to believe that a plane with 200 guests attending the private wedding of a foreign national would have been allowed to land at an air-force base if the father of the bride was not financially entangled with President Jacob Zuma and his family,” De Vos wrote on his blog Constitutionally Speaking.
DA defence spokesman David Maynier called the press conference “an exercise in damage control designed to ‘firewall’ President Zuma and members of his cabinet from the political fallout.
“The key, repeated by virtually every minister present, was that ‘no executive authority was granted for the plane to land’,” he said.
Maynier said the internal investigation by directors-general would shield ministers.
“We need a full-scale parliamentary investigation... We cannot have a situation where responsibility is displaced to senior officials who are then hung out to dry in an effort to contain the political fallout,” he said.
The Gupta family has insisted throughout that the landing was properly authorised, but did not immediately respond to the government statements yesterday. — Additional reporting Sapa
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