- President Cyril Ramaphosa has asked Justice Minister Thembi Simelane to explain her involvement in the VBS corruption scandal.
- While mayor of Polokwane, Simelane took a loan from a company that brokered a deal between the municipality and VBS Bank.
- Several political parties, and civil society organisations, expressed concern about an apparent conflict of interest with the justice minister, who oversees the NPA, being embroiled in the VBS scandal.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has requested a detailed briefing from Justice Minister Thembi Simelane over her involvement in the VBS scandal.
On Monday, News24 and the Daily Maverick reported on a joint investigation, which revealed Simelane had used a “commercial loan” of R575 600 from Gundo Wealth Solutions, owned by Ralliom Razwinane, to purchase a coffee shop in Sandton.
WATCH | Justice minister took half-a-million-rand ‘loan’ from accused VBS investment broker
At the time, Simelane was the mayor of Polokwane when the municipality unlawfully invested R349 million into VBS, which was brokered by Razwinane’s Gundo.
Forensic investigations found VBS paid a kickback, worth R24.2 million, to Razwinane for brokering investments from various municipalities and state entities through allegedly corrupt transactions and breaches of the Municipal Finance Management Act.
He is currently on trial for fraud, corruption and money laundering for his role as a commissions agent connecting municipalities, including the Polokwane Municipality, with VBS.
READ | NGOs call on Justice Minister Simelane to come clean over VBS involvement
After her appointment as justice minister in July, Simelane now oversees the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), which is investigating and prosecuting crimes associated with the collapse of VBS.
After ignoring News24’s requests for comment on Monday, the Presidency issued a statement on Wednesday morning.
“President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted with concern media reports containing allegations of corruption against the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Ms Thembi Simelane,” said Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya.
“The media reports have linked the minister with monies alleged to have been received improperly from the VBS Mutual Bank during her tenure as mayor of the Polokwane Municipality.”
The statement continued:
The president has requested a detailed report and briefing from the Minister on the matter.
Parties like the DA, ActionSA and GOOD have expressed their concern over the apparent conflict of interest in the minister overseeing the NPA being embroiled in the VBS saga. ActionSA has asked the Public Protector to investigate, while the DA wants her to appear before the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development, and GOOD has called on Ramaphosa to remove her.
The EFF, whose leader Julius Malema and former deputy leader, Floyd Shivambu (who has since moved to the MKP), are also facing allegations that they benefitted from the VBS loot, called on Simelane to resign.
In a joint statement released on Tuesday, Freedom Under Law (FUL), the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Judges Matter and Defend Our Democracy expressed their concern.
READ | Tony Leon | The key political question on Simelane and Motsoaledi: ‘do I contradict myself?’
They noted that while Simelane had claimed that the transaction was a legitimate commercial loan which was fully repaid, she didn’t provide the loan agreement or proof of settlement of the loan.
The statement reads: “It is crucial that the minister responds fully and transparently to these allegations. Perceptions of corruption and conflicts of interest cause significant harm to public confidence in governance institutions and the rule of law.”
