The dramatic dropping of criminal charges against state capture and corruption accused Carlos Bonifacio, chief accountant of the now-defunct Bosasa, should have all South Africans sitting up in their chairs and clamouring for answers.
It will certainly have the naysayers of the capture of the SA state singing from the rafters and taking to social media in their “I told you so” regalia.
In May the Investigative Directorate, the long arm of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), established to deal with state capture cases, firmly claimed the case against Bonifacio and his five co-accused was progressing well.
Yet, barely a month after the claim, TimesLIVE revealed the NPA quietly dropped all the charges against him.
The SA public deserves an explanation as to exactly what happened in the past month for the NPA to publicly go from “we are progressing well in this case” to dropping all charges against him.
The dropping of the corruption, fraud and money-laundering charges occurred a week after the state capture commission chairperson, chief justice Raymond Zondo, presented his fifth and final damning report on the capture of the SA state to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Zondo, who in his third report into state capture, almost entirely devoted to the far reach of Bosasa’s alleged corruption tentacles, recommended the NPA strongly consider prosecuting Bonifacio for corruption, money laundering and fraud.
It did, and until Tuesday, Bonifacio had been appearing in the Pretoria Specialised commercial crimes court alongside his co-accused, senior Bosasa executives Angelo Agrizzi and Andries van Tonder, former correctional services department head Linda Mti and CFO Patrick Gillingham.
With the NPA dropping the charges against Bonifacio, South Africans are rightfully left wondering whether what was heard during the commission hearings, and what was found by the SIU and Zondo, is actually true.
He was charged based on investigations and findings by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), and Zondo, for his alleged role in helping Bosasa and its now dead CEO, Gavin Watson, secure R1.6bn worth of contracts with the department of correctional services between 2004 and 2007.
The contracts were for the provision of catering and training services, installation of CCTV cameras and perimeter fencing and the supply of television systems and monitoring equipment at prisons.
Bonifacio’s claimed role in the alleged corruption is reportedly facilitating the payment of a R180,000 bribe for the benefit of Gillingham. At the time Gillingham was part of the department’s bid adjudication committee. The bribe was allegedly a deposit paid to a Gauteng car dealership reportedly for a Mercedes-Benz for Gillingham.
The SIU’s investigation, and Agrizzi’s damning testimony before Zondo, really lifted the lid on the dirty and murky world that develops when unscrupulous businesspeople and greedy politicians mix.
Agrizzi’s spellbinding testimony, the findings of the investigations by the SIU and Zondo into the wheeling and dealing of Bosasa’s executives, and the apparent lengths they were prepared to go to secure government tenders, were hailed.
It exposed the alleged corrupt involvement of current and former government ministers and ANC heavyweights with big businesses such as Bosasa and the efforts to capture the SA state.
But now with the NPA dropping the charges against Bonifacio, South Africans are rightfully left wondering whether what was heard during the commission hearings and what was found by the SIU and Zondo are actually true.
It appears the prosecutors in the case do not seem to think so, or are at least doubtful of some of the claims.
If not, why has the NPA dropped the charges against Bonifacio?
If the validity of the claims and the findings of the investigations are unknown, why did the NPA proceed with charges against Bonifacio in the first place?
Surely it would have been wiser to wait and gather all the evidence, even from a trial against his co-accused, before launching what is bound to be a lengthy and costly prosecution.
State capture has already cost the country enough. Its four-year investigation cost R1bn.
And what of Bonifacio’s former co-accused?
The NPA was adamant the case against Bonifacio, Agrizzi, Van Tonder, Voster, Mti and Gillingham was on track.
But is this still true? How solid is the case against them, really, and by implication against the politicians entwined in Bosasa’s alleged corruption tentacles?
South Africans are right to question this and demand the NPA speak up and explain when they drop charges against alleged state capturers instead of letting such things quietly fly under the radar.
The country is tired of having its time and resources wasted.
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