Johannesburg – The DA has called on the newly-appointed acting Hawks head, Yolisa Matakata, to prioritise investigations that had apparently been neglected by her axed predecessor Berning Ntlemeza.
In a statement released yesterday, the DA shadow minister for police, Zakhele Mbhele, said some of the cases had long been ignored.
Mbhele highlighted cases that the DA had reported but had hit a snag.
They included:
State Security Minister David Mahlobo for alleged links to illegal rhino horn trading;
The Gupta family for allegedly offering ministerial porfolios to, among others, Mcebisi Jonas, Vytjie Mentor and Des van Rooyen;
The Gupta family for kickbacks from Transnet and Neotel contracts that they allegedly laundered through holding company Homix;
The Minister of Mineral Resources, Mosebenzi Zwane, and the Gupta family for the Eskom-Tegeta-Optimum Coal deal;
The Police Minister, Fikile Mbalula, former Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor Danny Jordaan and others for the Fifa bribery scandal;
Linda Mti for irregularly awarding of more than R2 billion worth of contracts to Bosasa;
Defence Minister Nosiviwe Maphisa-Ngqakula for allegedly smuggling Burundian Michelle Wege into the country;
Former Energy minister Tina Joematt-Petersen for the sale of the national oil reserve by the Strategic Fuel Fund;
Dudu Myeni for gross mismanagement of and financial losses at SAA;
Speaker Baleka Mbete for allegedly accepting a bribe from mining company Gold Fields.
Mbhele said previous interference in the Hawks was a vehicle to carry out various political agendas that could not be allowed to persist.
“In the face of growing state capture across government, these investigations are more pertinent now than ever. The DA hopes that Matakata will act with integrity in her new position and will prioritise the needs of South Africa by ensuring that the Hawks function as an independent organised crime-fighting unit,” he said.
He added that the DA was concerned by reports over the weekend that Ntlemeza was planning to ignore the court and was due to try to go back to work today as the head of the Hawks. To do so would be to act with impunity.
“This cannot be allowed, and Matakata must ensure that Ntlemeza is barred entry into the building if he tries such a stunt. The important work of the Hawks cannot be curtailed further by any unlawful actions by Ntlemeza.
“We will continue to push for an independent crime-fighting leadership that we can have full confidence in and that is not to be plagued by political interference. South Africa deserves nothing less,” said Mbhele.