By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Congress of the People (Cope) laid criminal charges against former State Security Agency (SSA) head Arthur Fraser on Monday.
The State Capture Commission found that R1.5 billion was unaccounted for at the SSA between 2012 and 2018.
Cope spokesperson Dennis Bloem says the allegations against Fraser were “very serious” and that they warranted immediate investigation by law enforcement agencies.
Bloem said that the country cannot wait on President Cyril Ramaphosa for another four months before the country acts on the state capture commission’s report.
He was quick to add that the party was not doing Ramaphosa’s bidding.
“We are not concerned about the fight between Fraser and Ramaphosa nor the fact that he had opened a case against the president. Our main concern is that state intelligence is the heart and soul of any country and if that is compromised then any country is susceptible to foreign attacks.”
He went on to say that “the abuse of taxpayers’ money on a private intelligence unit called Principal Agents Network [as found in the final section of the report] is very scary and needs immediate action from the criminal justice system”.
Fraser, former State Security Minister David Mahlobo and Ambassador Thulani Dlomo are implicated in allegations on the mishandling and distribution of large amounts of money from the SSA.
The commission recommended that Fraser be investigated.
Meanwhile leader John Steenhuisen said he has written to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, requesting that she urgently establish an ad-hoc committee to investigate what really happened at Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala game farm.
“Allegations that a secret Crime Intelligence fund was used to pay for the clandestine, off-the-record operation to track and recover the stolen money and apprehend the suspects, as well as the deployment of elite task force members to the president’s farm at an alleged cost of R2 million per month, have broadened the scope of this scandal considerably.”
“In addition to this, the alleged involvement of Deputy State Security Minister Zizi Kodwa in secret discussions with Namibian authorities means that this scandal now involves, among others, the VIP Protection Services, Saps, the Justice Department, Crime Intelligence and State Security, “Steenhuisen said.
Steenhuisen added that the robbery at Phala Phala is now well beyond the scope of any single portfolio committee, and as such it calls for the establishment of an ad-hoc committee.