Time running out for ANC to reveal the depth of State capture

18 March 2016

Vytjie Mentor, Mcebisi Jonas, Barbara Hogan, Ngoako Ramathlodi and a few others are beginning to lift the veil on state capture by the Gupta family. The question that many are asking is why the ANC leaders remained silent about all of these goings on until now. For those who have knowledge of any secret approaches by any of Mr Zuma’s friends, now is the time to make full disclosure. Those who remain silent beyond this point will be accused of wilful collusion and deliberate suppression of the truth.

Vytjie Mentor revealed that she had informed a minister and a fellow ANC member about her being offered the post of Minister of Public Enterprises by the Gupta family. That minister and that ANC MP now have no place to hide. They must examine their conscience and confirm the truth of the matter. If they don’t, they will be acting unethically.

Besides those who were offered ministerial posts, there were others who occupied such posts previously but were subsequently removed from the executive. People like Ben Martins and Yunus Carim  who are no longer Ministers should indicate whether they fell from grace because of any resistance to a Gupta initiative. Was there anyone else who failed to toe the line and paid the price? They too can help to shed light on this matter that has now seized the attention of South Africa.

For us, it was revealing to see so many ministers being absent from the House on Thursday. It is most unusual for Ministers to absent themselves when the President is answering questions and especially when they knew before hand that he was going to come under severe pressure on the axing of Nene. This gives us the impression that many ministers are tussling with ethical issues and seeking to put some distance between themselves and Mr Zuma.

The whole of the ANC is now contaminated. Those who take the opportunity to speak out will save their political reputations. Those who are forced into coming out with the truth at a later stage will be seen as crass political opportunists and cowards. The ferreting of the truth will not cease.

Now is therefore the last opportunity for every decent ANC MP and minister to reveal any Gupta connection and their secret agenda.   

Meanwhile COPE applauds ANC members like Kgalema Mothlanthe, Rev Frank Chikane, Denis Goldberg, Ben Turok, Vytjie Mentor, Mcebisi Jonas, and Barbara Hogan who have had the courage to question the wrong that is going on in the ANC. For the sake of South Africa we earnestly hope that many more ANC leaders and members will follow suit and speak out.

The time for the ANC to reveal the depth of state capture is running out.

Issued by Dennis Bloem, COPE Spokesperson, 18 March 2016