The Democratic Alliance (DA) is laying charges of what the party says is systemic racketeering, against the African National Congress (ANC) – one week after the final volume of the Zondo Commission report has been made public.
The DA says for the commission to have any credibility, criminal charges, arrests and prosecutions must follow.
Party Chief Whip, Natasha Mazzone and her colleague, Cilliers Brink filed an affidavit at the Cape Town police station.
Mazzone says the DA wants to make the findings of the state capture report count for something.
She likened the ruling party to a criminal syndicate.
The charges relate to alleged racketeering activities over a multitude of years.
In 2019, the DA asked the National Prosecution Authority boss, Adv Shamila Batohi, to investigate the ANC for this, as well as fraud and the looting of public money, which allegedly took place over the past two decades.
According to Mazzone, nothing has been done to date. But she says now, with the evidence procured by the Zondo Commission report, the charges and an investigation are justified.
The DA is laying the charges against the organisation as a whole; its leaders, the NEC, as well as certain individuals.
“Of course, Jacob Zuma being at the time the head of the organisation, because as we know all organisations, private companies or political parties are run by an individual. But the ANC as a whole knew state capture was happening. It’s actually mentioned in the Zondo Commission report itself that there were cadre deployment meetings,” says Mazzone.
Attempts to get hold of ANC Spokesperson Pule Mable were unsuccessful.
