Members of the parliamentary public enterprises committee have responded to allegations that state security minister Bongani Bongo attempted to bribe the evidence leader of the inquiry into state capture.
The Sunday Times reported that Bongo had approached evidence leader Ntuthuzelo Vanara‚ offering him a blank cheque to resign from the inquiry.
Vanara laid out the allegations in an affidavit that he submitted to parliament's management.
Before the inquiry got under way on Tuesday morning‚ ANC MP Mondli Gungubele said: “We must treat this as an allegation‚ but it is very‚ very serious if found to be true.”
He called on the ethics committee to conduct a thorough investigation and make “timeous findings”‚ so that the matter could be properly addressed.
“This will be one of the low points of our lives as government‚ if found to be true‚” he added.
African Christian Democratic Party MP Steve Swart said the latest allegations were part of a concerted effort to intimidate Vanara and the inquiry.
“We have no reason to doubt the version of advocate Vanara as presented‚” he said.
The DA's Natasha Mazzone said Parliament needed to act in terms of the Prevention of Combating of Corrupt Activities Act. She said that because Vanara was not a member of the executive or an MP‚ he fell outside the Ethics Act.
The Economic Freedom Fighters’ Floyd Shivambu said the matter needed to be elevated to the public protector‚ as the Executive Ethics Act charged the public protector with investigating violations.
“We have no reason to doubt advocate Vanara‚” he added.
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