Bosasa ready to spill beans on Andile Ramaphosa’s contracts – Maimane

The leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) Mmusi Maimane said in a statement on Tuesday that the chair of Bosasa, now known as African Global Operations, Joe Gumede has confirmed to him in writing that the company has formally approached two of Andile Ramaphosa’s companies – Blue Crane Pty Ltd and Offtake Pty Ltd – requesting permission to disclose the contracts that exist between those companies and Bosasa.

Maimane said this follows his request for access to these contracts in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA).

The DA leader said: “In his letter, Gumede states: “We have accordingly afforded Blue Crane Pty Ltd and Offtake Pty Ltd 21 days from today’s date to give written consent that we may disclose the documents requested, alternatively, to make written or oral representations to us giving us reasons why they believe the documents requested should not be disclosed.””

Maimane said the party’s legal team has begun the legal process of interdicting the full, unredacted agreements between Bosasa and Andile Ramaphosa’s companies – including all the salient terms and conditions of such agreements.

He said the party urges both of Ramaphosa Jr’s companies to avoid the inevitable, and accede to its request by disclosing these agreements.

“If there is nothing to hide, then there should be no hesitation on their behalf.

“President Ramaphosa himself admitted that such lucrative contracts exist between Bosasa and his son’s companies when I questioned him in Parliament about a suspicious R500 000 “donation” by Bosasa CEO Gavin Watson. He then changed his mind days later and said the R500 000 was actually a “donation” towards his own ANC presidential election campaign.

“This about-turn is highly suspicious and directly ties the president and his son to Bosasa. Both have financially benefitted from a company that has been bribing ANC officials for the better part of two decades,” Maimane said.

He further said the president’s failure to act in relation to Bosasa is equally as suspicious.

“Despite overwhelming evidence suggesting corruption and bribery by Bosasa, Ramaphosa still has not:

• Instituted a full-scale independent inquiry – headed by a retired judge to be selected by the Chief Justice – to fully investigate the Bosasa scandal, which now involves the President and his family;
• Instructed his Cabinet to audit all government contracts and deals with Bosasa;
• Instructed his Cabinet to cancel all existing government contracts with Bosasa;
• Made public his formal submission to the Public Protector; and
• Made public his son Andile’s business contract(s) with Bosasa, which he told Parliament he has personally seen.

“The circle of secrecy between Bosasa and the Ramaphosa’s must be broken. We, therefore, urge the president to stop talking and start acting on corruption – even when it implicates his own family,” Maimane said.

He added that the system of corruption in the governing ANC was not simply a feature of Jacob Zuma and the Gupta family.

“Corruption is in the very DNA of the ANC, and the party must be removed from office in order to defeat corruption once and for all.”

Meanwhile, the commission of inquiry into state capture will resume on Tuesday.

The commission will hear the testimony of two of its investigators and two other witnesses.

(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)

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