Democratic leader Mmusi Maimane went to the Rosebank police station in Johannesburg on Tuesday to lay corruption charges against President Jacob Zuma.
Briefing reporters after spending close to an hour inside the police station‚ Maimane said he laid the charges after the release of the former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s State of Capture report‚ which made a number of observations about the relationship between the president and the Gupta family.
The report‚ released last month‚ also suggested that Eskom had been giving special favours to Gupta-owned Tegeta Exploration and Resources.
Eskom CEO Brian Molefe resigned from Eskom last Friday in the interests of good corporate governance‚ but said his resignation was not an admission of wrongdoing on his part.
“We laid the original complaint to the Public Protector on the basis of a report by deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas and (former African National Congress MP Vytjie) Mentor‚” said Maimane
“We contend that the State of Capture report... provides extensive prima facie evidence of corruption‚ undue influence and interference by President Zuma‚ members of the Gupta family and other actors — all to further their own personal interests at the expense of the South African people.”
Maimane said the police must now launch an investigation into these criminal charges without delay.
He said the charges it laid were not exhaustive.
“Once a thorough criminal investigation had been conducted into the matter‚ the total count of charges that could eventually be formulated might number in the hundreds‚ with the public protector’s report only scraping the tip of the iceberg.”
Maimane said in addition to Zuma and the Guptas‚ the DA had also requested the police to investigate possible wrongdoing on behalf of the board members of Eskom‚ Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane and others.
DA lays corruption charges against Zuma
Briefing reporters after spending close to an hour inside the police station‚ Maimane said he laid the charges after the release of the former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s State of Capture report‚ which made a number of observations about the relationship between the president and the Gupta family.
The report‚ released last month‚ also suggested that Eskom had been giving special favours to Gupta-owned Tegeta Exploration and Resources.
Eskom CEO Brian Molefe resigned from Eskom last Friday in the interests of good corporate governance‚ but said his resignation was not an admission of wrongdoing on his part.
“We laid the original complaint to the Public Protector on the basis of a report by deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas and (former African National Congress MP Vytjie) Mentor‚” said Maimane
“We contend that the State of Capture report... provides extensive prima facie evidence of corruption‚ undue influence and interference by President Zuma‚ members of the Gupta family and other actors — all to further their own personal interests at the expense of the South African people.”
Maimane said the police must now launch an investigation into these criminal charges without delay.
He said the charges it laid were not exhaustive.
“Once a thorough criminal investigation had been conducted into the matter‚ the total count of charges that could eventually be formulated might number in the hundreds‚ with the public protector’s report only scraping the tip of the iceberg.”
Maimane said in addition to Zuma and the Guptas‚ the DA had also requested the police to investigate possible wrongdoing on behalf of the board members of Eskom‚ Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane and others.
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