Judge Seriti must pay back Arms Deal Commission fees: De Lille

The initial whistle blower on the controversial arms deal, GOOD party leader, Patricia de Lille has called for Judge Willie Seriti to pay back the fees he received as chair of the Commission of Inquiry into the controversial Arms Deal.

This follows Wednesday’s ruling in the High Court in Pretoria that set aside the Seriti report saying the commission failed to fully investigate serious allegations put before it.

De Lille, who alerted Parliament about the alleged corruption in the multi-billion rand arms deal 20 years ago, says if action was taken then, further looting of state funds would have been prevented.

She says the money paid to the judge and evidence leaders needs to be paid back.

De Lille says, “The lifespan of that commission was expanded time after time, so we wasted millions. I think it is only fair that the taxpayers of this country demand our millions be paid back. I think that all the evidence leaders must give back our money, the fees that have been paid to Judge Seriti must be paid back.

“We hear many court judgments where the court orders people who go for litigation to the PP (Public Protector), for instance, to pay back the money. I think there are similar circumstances that prevail here where we can demand that the money be paid back.”

De Lille says no one is above the law. “We should be grateful to the NPO’s for acting on the convictions and on behalf of all of us taking the findings to court.”

“The judgment presents a new opportunity to demonstrate in South Africa that all citizens irrespective of power or connectivity are governed by the same laws and constitution,” De Lille adds.-Additional Reporting by Horisani Sithole.

Click below to Morning Live’s interview with  Patricia de Lille: