By Moshoeshoe Monare
While the African National Congress is threatening to take disciplinary actions against any member involved in the contentious email saga, axed spy chief Billy Masetlha is challenging President Thabo Mbeki's decision to fire him.
At a national working committee (NWC) meeting attended by Mbeki on Monday, the organisation decided to establish a task team to investigate the emails, which were declared a hoax by Intelligence Inspector-General Zolile Ngcakani, the cabinet, and security directors-general.
The emails implicate senior ANC and government officials in a malicious plot to oust former deputy president Jacob Zuma from the presidential race.
Although Mbeki and the majority of the national executive committee (NEC) agreed with Ngcakani, some senior officials, such as ANC secretary-general Kgalema Motlanthe, managed to persuade the NEC at the weekend to conduct parallel investigations.
The task team will be constituted in the form of a commission and will conduct its hearing in camera in the coming weeks. The terms of reference include probing the authenticity and origin of the e-mails, but the ruling party tried to strike a balance to accommodate those, like Motlanthe, who believe in the authenticity of the emails and others, including Mbeki, who endorse Ngcakani's report.
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This is mainly the reason why - as a compromise - the two sides agreed that disciplinary action should be taken against anyone involved in the "dissemination, creation and conception" of the controversial emails - irrespective of whether they were fake or genuine.
ANC spokesperson Smuts Ngonyama referred queries to Motlanthe, who was not available for comment.
According to Ngcakani, the emails were fabricated by Masetlha as part of an intelligence project - codenamed Avani - aimed at monitoring the political climate in the country.
Masetlha is expected to be arrested this week for fraud and contravening the law relating to the interception of communication.
His lawyer, Imraan Haffegee, said on Monday night that his client was waiting for the police to arrest him.
Police sources could not say when he would be arrested. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi said on Monday they were waiting for the police to refer a docket to them.
Mbeki fired Masetlha after what the president described as the breakdown of trust. The former intelligence director-general had called Mbeki a liar in court papers.
However, the unrepentant Masetlha is challenging his dismissal in court. He issued court papers on Monday and was expected to serve them on Mbeki on Tuesday morning.
Haffegee told The Star on Monday night that Mbeki should explain in court what he meant by the breakdown of trust.
"He made the decision to amend my client's terms of office in a sense that it expires in 2007, but he amended it to expire last week. We will ask the court to overturn that decision - it's wrong," he said.
Haffegee said they were also "considering their options" to sue Ngcakani for accusing Masetlha of fabricating emails and manufacturing intelligence.
"We are disturbed by the manner (Ngcakani) conducted the investigations. He was not objective. We are considering our options," he said.
- This article was originally published on page 3 of The Star on March 28, 2006
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