'A child could have written this': Malema on Gordhan 'intelligence report'

30 March 2017 - 18:16 By Graeme Hosken
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EFF leader Julius Malema has said the so-called intelligence report President Jacob Zuma is relying on is something a child in an early childhood development class would have written.

The Times reported on Thursday that Zuma is to use an intelligence report - purported to show how Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan was‚ through the help of UK and US financial institutions‚ to overthrow South Africa's government - to remove the minister.

Speaking outside the Constitutional Court‚ where his party filed papers to have the court force parliament to institute disciplinary action against Zuma‚ Malema said the report was written by a Gupta employee. "It was written by someone hired to clean up the Gupta's and Zuma's image."

He said the party had a copy of the report which it would release on its website. Malema described it as fake like so many other fake intelligence reports circulating in South Africa.

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"The report was concocted to taint the image of others. There is no evidence to back up the claims it makes.

"It reads like a narrative. There is no evidence of interception which shows that there was a plan by the minister to work with others to overthrow the government and collapse the country's economy."

Asked if he would lay criminal charges against the author‚ Malema said if they did the author would simply say it's a concoction of his imagination.

"There is no intelligence in this report."

On the filing of papers in the Constitutional Court‚ Malema said if the court could become involved in matters like the SA Social Services Agency debacle‚ then it could involved itself in forcing parliament to carry out its constitutional mandate.

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"We are not asking [it] to take over the role of parliamentarians. What we are asking is that the court orders parliament to carry out its constitutional duties.

"Zuma was found to have breached his oath of office a year ago‚ yet no action has been taken against him."

He said they had tried going to parliament to get the institution to carry out its duties‚ "but we failed". "We have been left with no choice but to approach the court as parliament continues to violate court orders.

"The disciplinary proceedings are necessary to get Zuma to account to all of South Africa. He has never been held accountable and he needs to be."

Malema said that Friday would be a year since judgement was handed down against Zuma. "No one‚ especially a public servant‚ is above the law. Zuma is definitely not above the law. We want the court to say that parliament must engage in this disciplinary process and abide by the law.

"Once that process is started‚ we parliamentarians‚ will remove Zuma through a vote of no confidence as is our duty. Parliament is captured by the Guptas and now needs to be uncaptured. We hope the court will look at our application favourably."

 

 

- TMG Digital/The Times

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