MANYANE MANYANE
THE Office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence (OIGI) and Police Minister Bheki Cele have been accused of conspiring to keep the report into President Cyril Ramaphosa’s alleged abuse of funds meant for crime intelligence a secret in an attempt to cover up the theft of dollars from his couch in Phala Phala Farmgate scandal.
The State Security Agency’s (SSA’s) former chairperson of the staff council, Xolile Mashukuca, who launched the complaint in 2022, requested a copy of the investigation report.
Mashukuca was denied a copy after two attempts.
The first attempt was in a letter written on April 26, requesting a copy of the report, after the Inspector-General of Intelligence (IGI) Imtiaz Fazel informed Mashukuca that the report had been concluded and submitted to Cele.
Fazel said the report was submitted in terms of Section 7(7)(f) of the Intelligence Oversight Act 40 of 1994.
The second attempt was made on Tuesday.
Mashukuca requested a copy of the report to find out which allegations had been substantiated and which had not, and what the reasons were.
In response to both requests, Fazel said the IGI was bound by the provisions of the Oversight Act, and all investigations conducted by the IGI that culminated into findings and recommendations were for oversight purposes only. He added that the report had been submitted to Cele in terms of Section 7(7)(f) of the Oversight Act as required, and any deviation from this provision would be contrary to the act.
Fazel said: “Moreover, disclosure of information accessed by the IGI in terms of the oversight mandate is subject to the provisions of Section 7(8)(b) of the Oversight Act.
“In light of the above, and in compliance with the Oversight Act, the investigation report cannot be provided to yourself or any other than those authorised in terms of Section 7(8)(b) of the Oversight Act.”
Cele’s spokesperson Lirandzu Themba confirmed that the report was received but said questions should be directed to the IGI who have investigated the matter.
Spokesperson Mava Scott on Saturday referred questions to IGI spokesperson Jay Govendor who said the letter issued by Fazel answers all the questions.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, did not respond when approached for comment.
The theft of $580 000 (about R8.7 million at the time) from Phala Phala came to light when former spy boss Arthur Fraser laid a criminal complaint against Ramaphosa. Since then, Ramaphosa has been under pressure to come clean about the events at his farm.
It has been reported that almost R20 million a month was taken from a secret crime intelligence fund to finance the undercover operations to trace the thieves and recover the stolen money.
In his complaint, Mashukuca wanted the IGI to investigate whether Ramaphosa abused his office and violated his oath of office and the Constitution when he instructed or asked the head of the police’s Presidential Protection Service, Major-General Wally Rhoode - or permitted the use of intelligence secret funds to finance unauthorised investigations and operations - about the theft at Phala Phala.
Mashukuca also wanted to know whether Ramaphosa allowed such funds to be used in his name to pursue investigations of an unofficially reported robbery that took place at Phala Phala in February 2020.
Mashukuca also asked the IGI to investigate whether the Ministry of Police or any official therein requested, approved, consented or was complicit in the abuse of the secret funds of the crime intelligence unit of the SAPS in violation of standing operating procedures or any other prescript governing the use of secret funds.
He also wanted an investigation into whether the Minister of Police or any official or other ministers had been aware, participated in, condoned or concealed the abuse of secret funds of crime intelligence of the SAPS during the “rogue” investigation into the theft at Phala Phala.
This was after the Sunday Independent in 2022 reported that a 16-member elite special task force had been deployed to Phala Phala after the theft. This allegedly cost taxpayers R20 million a month from crime intelligence secret funds.
Mashukuca said the intelligence secret funds were intended to fund covert operations aimed at neutralising threats against the state.
Mashukuca in a statement released this week also expressed dissatisfaction with the report being submitted to Cele. He said Cele was also the subject of an investigation and this made him incompetent to deal with the report. This was why it was important for him to get a copy of the report to also understand why it had been handed to Cele, he said.
The letter read: “Furthermore, there were media reports that implicated a number of Cabinet members in the plot to conceal unlawful activities involving the tracing of the armed robbers and the arrest of tracers by Namibian authorities and the subsequent events that ensued, including the request of the Namibian government for legal assistance through diplomatic means.
“This involved the departments of International Relations and Cooperation and Justice and Correctional Services and of police. All participated in events/or actions to conceal them all in the interest of protecting the president and doing so in violation of their respective oaths of office and allegiance to the Constitution.”
Mashukuca said this also raised the question of what Cele knew about these illegal activities and whether he was the appropriate authority to receive and act on the report. He said it was in the best interest of justice and integrity that the role of Cele in this “national scandal” was established to ascertain if he had not been tainted in any way.
He said he was also evaluating several options and among them was referring the report to the Investigating Directorate of the National Prosecuting Authority, which is outside the SAPS.
“But I want to act with the necessary urgency to ensure this matter receives the necessary attention and reach finality.”
Mashukuca said the scandal must not be viewed in isolation from the long list of abuses of intelligence funds, whether by former crime intelligence General Richard Mdluli or Arthur Fraser with the state security agency’s Pan Project, and similar abuses of secret funds.