Judge in Scorpions probe linked to arms deal

THE High Court judge appointed to investigate the future of the Scorpions has been linked to an arms company, sparking fears of a conflict of interest.

Judge Sisi Khampepe is the wife of businessman Siza Khampepe, director of Kgorong Investment Holdings, an empowerment partner of Reutech Radar Systems, which got a R220-million slice of the arms deal.

One of Siza Khampepe's fellow directors at Kgorong is attorney Julekha Mohamed, a former legal adviser of Deputy President Jacob Zuma and a business partner of Shamin "Chippy" Shaik, the former head of Defence acquisitions, and his brother Younis.

Judge Khampepe was appointed by President Thabo Mbeki last month to examine why the Scorpions unit was set up and what its mandate was. Her findings are expected to determine whether the elite crime-fighting unit is brought under the control of the police.

Siza Khampepe's business partner Mohamed, also known as "Comrade Julie", represented Foreign Affairs official Mo Shaik and former Transport Minister Mac Maharaj at the Hefer Commission of Inquiry into whether the former Director of Public Prosecutions, Bulelani Ngcuka, was an apartheid-era spy. The commission found that Ngcuka "probably never" acted as an agent for the apartheid government.

Mohamed also testified as a defence witness for Schabir Shaik in Durban two weeks ago, when she gave evidence about her trip to Paris on Zuma's instructions to the French arms company Thomson-CSF.

Judge Khampepe yesterday confirmed her husband's association with Kgorong, but said there was no investigation of her husband, Kgorong or any of his business activities. She said that as a judge she was impartial and independent.

"This is the basis on which my appointment has been made."

Dr Gavin Woods, former chairman of Parliament's standing committee on public accounts, who was instrumental in pushing for an investigation into the arms deal, this week said: "The appointment can pose a conflict of interest. "

He said that if indeed Judge Khampepe was married to a director of a company that had benefited from the arms deal, it was inappropriate and that she should be removed.

Judith February, of the Institute for Democracy in SA, said the appointment, at the very least, created a perception of a conflict of interest that could cast doubt on the findings.

Presidential spokesman Bheki Khumalo said the business dealings of Judge Khampepe's husband would in no way "cloud her judgment".

"The president has no doubt that she will carry out her function with integrity and professionalism," Khumalo said.

He said she was unlikely to allow personal and financial matters to interfere with her work and ultimately also had her "own reputation to protect".

Asked whether the judge's financial interests and her husband's business dealings had been scrutinised before the appointment, Khumalo said background checks had been done.

Judge Khampepe, a former Truth and Reconciliation Commissioner and a one-time Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, will have four months to decide whether the 519-member Scorpions should be brought under police control.

The unit has made powerful enemies after tackling cases against high-profile politicians and businessmen, including former Transport Minister Mac Maharaj, former ANC Chief Whip Tony Yengeni, Deputy President Jacob Zuma and Durban businessman Schabir Shaik.