Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Member of Parliament’s Standing Committee on Finance Mzwanele Manyi has told Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago that he was very disappointed in how the bank has dealt with the Phala Phala investigation.
The Bank’s investigation was limited to whether exchange control regulations were transgressed. The Bank recently said it cannot conclude that there was any contravention. This related to the $580 000 at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm.
Responding to the findings which Kganyago presented to the committee, Manyi says the bank decided to focus on one piece of regulation to arrive at its conclusion.
He says, “The disappointment I have is that the Reserve Back seems to have decidedly taken the narrowest of routes to deal with such an important matter which has caused South Africa an international embarrassment, to have a whole President implicated in a situation that money is stuffed in sofas and mattresses is quite embarrassing Chairperson and given the milieu regulations that the Reserve Bank operates under, for them just to tick one and leave the rest it’s really concerning.”
United Democratic Movement (UDM) Chief Whip and member of the committee Nqabayomzi Kwankwa says he is not convinced by the Reserve Bank’s findings regarding the explanation on how the money was received to secure the purchase of the buffalos.
“We are anything but stupid … if you had experience of trading on the African continent and other parts of the world, all you have to do is to provide a bank guarantee to show that you have enough money in your account to be able to take care of that transaction. The Bank guarantee actually assures the seller of the product that you have the money and you are are serious buyer.”
VIDEO: SABC News Reporter Lulama Matya on Reserve Bank Governor briefing Parliament on Phala Phala saga:
