EFF not happy with Steinhoff report

Veronica Mente, chair of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), is not satisfied with the Steinhoff Holdings report presented yesterday by the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa).

Scopa was briefed by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), the Hawks and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on the Covid-19 procurement cases and corruption cases in state-owned entities.

Mente said parliament needed an extensive programme that delved deep into matters pertaining to Steinhoff.

The NPA has confirmed receiving more than R30 million from Steinhoff to investigate fraud in the company, but says there is no conflict of interest.

ALSO READ: ‘Nothing irregular’ about Steinhoff funding Hawks investigation, says NPA

“We need to know from the point of March 2019, and the processes that were undertaken by law enforcement to date, what exactly has been done and how far are the investigations?”

While she agreed the public was not allowed to know the names of people being investigated, she wanted to know why the processes in place were stalling.

“We ought to know what is preventing you [NPA] from unearthing the people involved. We cannot keep the issue of Steinhoff on a standby; at some point it must be finalised.”

When the allegations surfaced in 2017, the value of the shares dropped significantly, resulting in prejudice to investors.

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