Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) deputy president Floyd Shivambu’s brother, Brian, says he intends to sue the Reserve Bank for defamation of character. Brian Shivambu has released a statement on the VBS Mutual Bank saga and his alleged involvement in it.
Shivambu has denied receiving any funds from VBS, saying the report has put a strain on his family. On Wednesday, the Reserve Bank released a forensic report which lists Shivambu as among those implicated in irregularly getting millions of rand in loans alongside politicians, traditional leaders and business people.
Read statement below:
Statement by Brian Shivambu on the VBS allegations: “Sgameka projects doesn’t have any working relationship with VBS & has never received payment from VBS. SA’s law does not permit anyone to be put into trial, &convict them without granting them the right to state their version”. pic.twitter.com/Bpy3xPaJBf
— Floyd Shivambu (@FloydShivambu) October 11, 2018
The EFF have meanwhile said they will fully respond to allegations that they benefited from VBS Mutual Bank. The EFF on Wednesday released a statement saying that the demise of the black-owned VBS bank was regrettable. However the party in the statement did not mention the revelations in the report that Brian Shivambu had received R16-million rand from VBS.
The party’s leader, Julius Malema, is to host a media conference this coming Tuesday – where that matter may be addressed.
However, Corruption Watch says that the EFF has questions to answer regarding its support for the continued existence of the bank.
Head of Corruption Watch David Lewis says, “While the EFF has been clear that those guilty of crime should be brought to book, they have been equally insistent that the bank must be allowed to keep on trading and that the Reserve Bank enabled this to happen. And now when you discover that in fact that the family of one of its leaders have been beneficiaries of the bank you know you have to ask yourself or they have to be asked the question: is there any connection between that fact and your support that the bank should continue operating.”
In further developments, most VBS employees have reportedly received letters to notify them of their imminent retrenchment. The letters indicate the final packages that they will be paid. The spokesperson of the office of the curator, Best Louise, has confirmed that only 25 employees will remain. She says the rest will get severance packages, three weeks’ salary and R5000 towards the payment of their debts. The workers will still get their 13th cheque and their last day at work will be November the 12th.
