Chief Justice Raymond Zondo handed over the final parts of the State Capture Report to President Cyril Ramaphosa on the 22nd of June 2022. Chief Justice Zondo indicated, at the handover, that these final parts deal with, amongst others, the evidence given by President Ramaphosa to the Commission (in his capacities as President of the country and President of the ANC), the State Security Agency, the Waterkloof landing, money flows, parliamentary oversight.
The handover of the final parts of the report marks almost 4 years of work by the Zondo Commission and about 3 years of public hearings where extensive and detailed evidence was led by people implicated in state capture and those identified as fighting state capture. These 3 years have laid bare the depth and breadth of state capture and corruption, in both the public sector and amongst those in the private sector that are alleged to have collaborated with public officials.
The last parts of the Report are handed over at a time when the country faces challenges on a broad front. These include ongoing lack of economic growth, high unemployment, poverty, inequality, political uncertainty in the run-up to the ANC elective conference in December and the national elections in 2024. We also must note the ongoing process to consider the allegations against President Ramaphosa, termed the “Phala Phala” issue. We believe the report must be considered within this context and we must look at how the lessons learnt can help our country address lascivious of growth and improving the lives of our people.
We will study these final parts of the report and identify areas where BUSA should respond in different ways. We have previously indicated the reports of the Commission are a watershed for our country and also provides an opportunity for the private sector to introspect, learn lessons and ensure businesses operate in a sustainable and ethical manner in undertaking their businesses. We will, in the next few weeks, look at the all the sections of the totality of the reports and decide on appropriate responses, both to the content of the report and on appropriate interventions by business.
ENDS
Cas Coovadia
Business Unity SA CEO
_____________________________________________________________________
For more information, please contact:
Sizwe Maswanganye
Tel: 011 784 8000
Email: sizwe.maswanganye@busa.org.za
