DA tells EFF they are ‘gold medal’ contenders for corruption

Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, DA MP Phumzile Van Damme pulled no punches on what her party thinks of the EFF being implicated in possibly receiving money from the VBS scandal’s “Great Bank Heist”.

She alleged the EFF and its leaders are corrupt and that, for once, she wouldn’t focus on the ANC.

“There is a party here –  I would like to talk about it and its corruption. I am not talking about the one in green, black and gold.

“If corruption was an Olympic sport, they would always win gold.”

The DA’s Phumzile van Damme addressing parliament in Cape Town. Picture: Elmond Jiyane, GCIS

She alleged that the EFF came to the National Assembly “dressed in overalls and gumboots, and the outfits of abo Mama bethu [domestic workers] who clean houses for a living”.

She accused them of hypocrisy in claiming to “care about the plight of the poor”.

“There could be nothing further from the truth. Their only concern is how to fill their pockets till they bulge with the people’s money. Their access to government is an opportunity to see if tenders can be directed to their friends and family.”

She referenced old corruption scandals involving questionable tenders in Limpopo that went to EFF leader Julius Malema through a company and a family trust linked to him – a matter that is still due to be prosecuted despite prima facie evidence that those involved have a case to answer.

“Did we really think the corruption would end with On-Point Engineering and Ratanang Trust?”

She also singled out EFF deputy leader Floyd Shivambu, who was fingered in media reports for allegedly receiving about R10 million from his younger brother Brian, who made R16 million in a year from VBS and its shareholder Vele Investments through payments a Reserve Bank-commissioned investigation found to be “gratuitous”.

“In the same way Mr Jacob Zuma, ubaba ka Duduzane, used his son to amass wealth through corrupt means, uBhuti ka Floyd did the same for Floyd Shivambu and his party,” alleged Van Damme, the DA’s Team One SA spokesperson on corruption.

She also dismissed the denials of the EFF, who said in a press conference last week that they had not been able to trace the alleged payments, including that of R1.3 million to the party’s own bank account.

“We simply cannot trust this party’s forensic investigative skills. It would be like trusting King Herod to guard a crèche.” (The biblical Herod allegedly slaughtered all children under two in an apparent attempt to murder Jesus Christ.)

Van Damme added: “Siyabonga, nizamile, but I think we will rely on the experts.”

She said the official opposition had asked the Hawks to investigate the EFF, “who we trust will conduct a forensic investigation over the EFF’s accounts”.

She expressed her hope that parliament’s ethics committee would speedily investigate the alleged conflict of interest regarding the money Shivambu allegedly received from his brother.

“If the matter goes to hearing, the committee must be open to the public,” she added. “The committee must use all tools available to it, including summoning witnesses and documents. We can’t have our people misled by wolves in dyed red wool proclaiming to care about them. They must be exposed for who they truly are: the Corrupt Eatists.”

She said a DA government would send all corrupt individuals to jail for 15 years.

“Tronk toe!” she concluded.

(Compiled by Charles Cilliers)

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