ActionSA demands answers on Ezulweni R102m settlement

ActionSA had approached the IEC to investigate an agreement between the ANC and Ezulweni investments after the two parties secretly resolved a R102m dispute.

In December, the sheriff of the Gauteng High Court attempted to seize ANC assets over debt owed to Ezulweni by the party, but was prevented from entering its headquarters Luthuli House in Johannesburg. A few weeks later it was announced that they had settled.

In a statement this week, ActionSA chairperson Michael Beaumont said there were concerns over how this matter was resolved.

Two-line statement is not enough

He said the ANC simply released a two-line statement on the resolution without any further details.

According to Beaumont, ActionSA wanted to ensure that IEC rules had not been broken through this agreement.

ALSO READ: ANC, Ezulweni Investments reach settlement after R102 million debt dispute

“In our letter to the IEC, ActionSA has voiced its impatience for what is emerging as a pattern of selective adherence to the provisions of the Party Funding Act.

“While ActionSA continues to abide by the provisions of the Act and achieve clean audits each year, other parties demonstrate an apparent pattern of ignoring the law with impunity.

“The disclosures in the quarter before and after the EFF rally at FNB Stadium, an event rumoured to cost over R70 million, revealed no donations made to the party,” Beaumont said.

ALSO READ: ANC and Ezulweni Investments start ‘urgent, without prejudice’ negotiations over R102m dispute

Beaumont said there were many possibilities as to how this matter was resolved.

He said it was a known fact that some companies would benefit from political parties by receiving business from them.

“The revelations of the State Capture Commission of Inquiry, which paved the way for the Party Funding Act, revealed in great detail how the ANC funded its activities through its donors’ receiving tenders.

“The notion that this R102 million settlement of its debt should be accepted at face value is offensive to a country that suffers under the impact of decades of greed and corruption,” Beaumont said.

The Citizen had contacted the ANC to find out how the deal was resolved but there had been no response.