Johannesburg - Former Speaker of the National Assembly Baleka Mbete said she once ignored a tip-off from a whistle-blower regarding the Arms Deal because Parliament was too busy to entertain unauthored letters.
She said the note containing "scary details" about the Arms Deal was slid under her office door while she was Deputy Speaker in Parliament.
In a shocking stance, Mbete told the Zondo Commission, that given the chance, she would do it again.
The former Speaker appeared at the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture on Tuesday evening where she fielded questions regarding Parliament's oversight role during the peak State Capture years under former President Jacob Zuma’s leadership.
When questioned on why Parliament did not investigate allegations of state capture earlier on when MP's raised concerns, Mbete said that Parliament could not investigate any and all information that came to them as rumours.
She told the Commission that, similarly, when she received a "note" under her office door containing details about the Arms Deal, she ignored it.
"I had no basis to take this letter to Parliament. Who was the author? It (the letter) was full of drama and it was very concerning but the person who slid it under my door must face me and tell me their concerns.
"Parliament is very busy and I cannot take something to it that has the status of a rumour," Mbete said.
The Commission Chairperson, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, said that while no one suggested every little note should be dealt with at Parliament, "one should not wait until it has enough evidence that can stand in a court of law before even looking into the issue".
Zondo said Parliament may not have had enough information to go one in the early years of state capture, but at some point it should have had enough evidence to launch an investigation into the matter.
IOL