The commission of inquiry set up by President Jacob Zuma to probe the scandal-plagued multibillion-rand arms deal has hit a snag – before its work has even begun.
On Thursday, the commission confirmed that two KwaZulu-Natal advocates, Vas Soni, SC, and Sthembiso Mdladla, who were chosen by commission chairman Judge Willie Seriti to lead evidence in the probe, had been removed.
Soni told the Daily News on Thursday that he had not been officially notified of his removal.
“I haven’t been told, but I understand that the decision had been made,” he said, adding that he was disappointed.
While the commission was tight-lipped on exact details on why the pair were removed, the Financial Mail reported that a routine vetting process had eliminated them.
According to the paper, it was discovered that Soni had failed to disclose that in 2008 he had acted for Thint, the local subsidiary of French arms company Thales, in its legal battle against the national director of public prosecutions.
However, Soni said he had had a discussion with Judge Seriti about him representing Thint a few months back.
The now-defunct Scorpions had brought charges against Thint for its alleged role in the controversial arms deal.
In 2008, the Scorpions were granted a search warrant for the offices of Thint as well as for the offices of Zuma’s lawyer, Michael Hulley, and thousands of documents were seized.
It was after these raids that Thint called on the services of Soni.
The charges against Thint and Zuma were later dropped after the National Prosecuting Authority declared there had been political interference.
According to the report, Mdladla was removed from the commission after it was discovered that the KwaZulu-Natal government had paid the advocate R2.4 million to conduct an inquiry into “ineffective policing” in the province in 2005 – but he had failed to submit a final report after almost six years.
Commission spokesman William Baloyi, said on Thursday: “All we can say is that they are no longer part of the commission and we respect their right not to disclose the reasons.”
Soni, who was evidence leader during the 2005 Jali Commission into prison conditions, said that he was saddened by his removal from the arms deal commission.
Mdladla refused to comment on his removal.
Baloyi said that the removal of Soni and Mdladla would not set back the work of the commission.
Since the commission of inquiry was established by Zuma late last year, it has seen the departure of key figures.
In October, Judge Willem van der Merwe asked to be relieved of his duties on the commission, citing personal reasons. And recently, commission secretary Mvuseni Ngubane was found dead at his home in Kloof after apparently committing suicide. - Daily News