Johannesburg - The United Democratic Alliance (UDM) leader, general Bantu Holomisa, has decried the lack of depth with which the Zondo Commission has treated some important state capture-related crimes.
In a letter dated January 9, 2023, Holomisa wants the Speaker of the National Assembly to address this issue by establishing another separate commission to probe evidence that was overlooked by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo.
In the letter to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, Holomisa pointed out the issue involving Iqbal Sharma, saying he missed out on yet another dossier that involves the true nature of state capture.
He said the recent article by the Sunday Independent accuses the chairperson of the commission into allegations of state capture, Chief Justice Zondo, of ignoring key evidence brought to his attention that exposes President Cyril Ramaphosa and other role players in state capture.
According to the Sunday Independent, the reason Sharma was ignored by Zondo and not given a chance to present his side of the story on the allegations against him is because his explosive affidavit was going to expose a lot of people.
Sharma is a South African businessman who is known for his close ties with the Gupta family, is affiliated with the department of trade and industry, and is a former Transnet boss.
"No findings were made against him either. The commission's lead investigator had received the almost 1000-page affidavit with concrete evidence attached. However, none of the Zondo Commission reports covered the document," the newspaper said.
"I refer to a recent article in the Sunday Independent, 'Zondo exposed: What the Commission did not want SA to know', wherein it is said that evidence that was submitted to the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture (‘the Zondo Commission') never made it to the final report of the state capture commission of inquiry or was even considered by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo. This article contains serious allegations, as you will agree," Holomisa charges.
He said the UDM had also, in 2020, submitted its very own evidence of state capture that has been ignored by the commission, which involves Iqbal Sharma and was ignored by the Zondo Commission despite there being ample evidence of possible state capture.
"The United Democratic Movement had also submitted evidence of state capture to the Zondo Commission in our 56-page correspondence to the Commission on September 23, 2020, titled 'Submission to the Commission: The real mastermind behind state capture', which the Commission acknowledged receipt of. As in the above instance and given its report, the Commission also did not seem to consider our submission in the end.
Holomisa has called on the government to establish yet another inquiry into the evidence that was ignored by the Zondo Commission, saying it is crucial that all the evidence be considered regardless of who it implicates.
"Parliament is still to consider the Zondo Commission’s report, and given that, for whatever reason (be it scope, time, or resource limits), the Zondo Commission seemingly did not consider all the documentation and evidence that had been submitted to it.
"It would therefore be advisable that Parliament consider appointing a retired judge to look into all the matters which the Zondo Commission did not attend to and to check whether there had not been a deliberate effort to sabotage the Zondo Commission with the exclusion of certain documentation/evidence from the Commission.
The former ANC member added that there seemed to have been a conflict of interests between Zondo and some of the evidence leaders who led the state capture report, which is why new people need to be appointed to continue the work that was ignored by this commission.
"Unfortunately, Chief Justice Zondo, his evidence leaders, and the President are conflicted. Hence, there is a need for new faces to deal with this matter, and I would kindly request that you consult with the Leader of Government Business in Parliament on this potentially serious matter," he said.
The Star