Explosive evidence expected at Commission of Inquiry into State Capture

Explosive evidence is expected to be submitted to the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture which will resume in Parktown, Johannesburg, on Monday morning.

Former and current ministers of public enterprises Barbara Hogan and Pravin Gordhan are expected to testify today and Thursday respectively.

Commission chairperson, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, had postponed the hearings for almost a month to allow implicated parties to present their versions.

In her evidence today, Hogan will give details on how the Gupta brothers pressured her into scrapping a lucrative flight route between Johannesburg and Mumbai to benefit their business interests.

Her allegations were corroborated in the testimony of former ANC MP Vytjie Mentor‚ who told the commission last month that former President Jacob Zuma offered her Hogan’s job in 2010 in exchange for doing the Guptas’ bidding which included cancelling the same flight routes.

Mentor said she turned down the offer and Hogan was axed by Zuma soon afterwards. She was replaced with Malusi Gigaba‚ who is now the Home Affairs minister.

And with Hogan and Gordhan expected to tell all when the commission resumes this morning, leadership expert Dr Mazwe Majola says so far the Zondo Commission has lived beyond what it was set out to do.

Gordhan to testify on Thursday

On Thursday, Gordhan will testify about his meetings with Ajay and Tony Gupta.

But in his submission to the Inquiry, which has been leaked to the media ahead of his testimony this week, Gordhan gave a vague recollection of a number of incidents in which he met the two.

In his 68 page sworn statement delivered to the Commission last month, Pravin Gordhan said he only met the Guptas once, and that was at a meeting requested by former President Zuma between 2009 and 2014.

But in his submission to the Inquiry, which has been leaked to the media ahead of his testimony this week, Gordhan gave a vague recollection of a number of incidents in which he met Ajay and Tony Gupta.

His fiercest critics the EFF had since called for him to follow on the footstep of his colleague Nhlanhla Nene and step down.

President Cyril Ramaphosa on the other hand has urged South Africans to allow the commission to do its work so that the truth of what happened can eventually come out.

Today is the 19th day of the commission and Justice Raymond Zondo is encouraging more and more people to come forward with information that will help his team. He also urged all concerned to corporate with the commissioners to help them finish their job within reasonable time.