Safety of JZ, Cyril ‘put at risk by spy rookies’

The shambles in the management of the State Security Agency (SSA) exposed former president Jacob Zuma and then deputy Cyril Ramaphosa to a threat of insecurity, the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture heard on Thursday.

In the Zuma era, there were irregularly recruited and poorly trained intelligence operatives tasked with assessing presidential safety at public events, taking over the role of experienced functionaries.

The milking of state resources also saw novice recruits, who travelled extensively wherever Zuma and Ramaphosa went, being paid R40,000 per month, according to testimony given by an unidentified witness “Mr Y”, whose evidence was supported by “Miss K” – another unidentified witness.

“The assessment of the presidential security was weakened.

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“Members of the directorate of special operations and co-workers who were irregularly recruited and trained by the [chief directorate for special operations], travelled extensively, using valuable state resources without providing any intelligence or information to the SSA in support of its authorised mandate.

“Project Veza found no discernible benefits to the SSA or the nation through these intelligence activities,” said Y.

The commission also heard how millions of rands were redirected from SSA’s legitimate operations to a project established “to guard” Zuma’s aircraft – leading to the agency incurring an unplanned expenditure of R1.5 million a month.

The safety of Zuma’s presidential aircraft took up 40% of the chief directorate for internal security’s (CDIS) budget of R48 million and R38 million in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 financial years, respectively.

“This means almost 40% of the chief directorate for internal security’s budget was redirected from other operational activities to meet the requirements of this project for the alleged protection of the aircraft,” said Y.

“It is highly likely that this project was not catered for in the CDIS internal budget, owing to the fact that the protection of the aircraft did not fall within the SSA’s duly authorised mandate.

“The R1.5 million a month in the expenditure incurred by the CDIS, was unplanned.

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“This meant almost 40% of the CDIS budget was redirected from other operational activities in order to meet the requirements of the project.

“We have done our own calculations for one year, which would have been below 40% and above 40% for the next year,” said Y.

K, who served in the chief directorate for internal security and its former boss, only identified as “Johan”, said the unit was weakened and the integrity of its vetting processes was eroded.

The directorate’s members, who helped in the plunder of state resources, had illegal access to firearms, were involved in the transportation of cash for operations and involved in a parallel vetting structure.

K also confirmed Y’s assertion that the directorate’s members were implicated in the robbery of R17 million in cash at the SSA’s headquarters, Musanda complex in Tshwane, in December 2015.

Members involved in the theft – confirmed by a senior official – were currently still in the employ of the SSA.

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