ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula has revealed that the ANC will soon bring Justice and Constitutional Development Minister, Thembi Simelane, before the party’s integrity commission to explain her side in the alleged dodgy loan from dealings around the VBS matter.
Mbalula, who was speaking to eNCA on Sunday, said the party will await President Cyril Ramaphosa who last week formally requested a briefing from Simelane following reports that she benefited through a “loan” of more than R500 000 which she used to open a Sandton coffee shop.
Responding to the allegations against the minister, Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said Ramaphosa was concerned about media reports alleging that the minister, who was a mayor in Limpopo at the time of the transaction, had benefited improperly from the looting of the VBS bank.
“The president has requested a detailed report and briefing from the minister on the matter,” said Magwenya.
“We are expecting a full report from her, in terms of what has been reported. It is upon her to note that she must report to the SG.”
“I must not be reminded that I have to report if I am implicated in something. She will have to go to the integrity commission to explain her part of the story. The President is also dealing with the matter at the level of government,” Mbalula said.
Last week, the DA, EFF, ActionSA and other parties called for Simelane to resign from her new position as minister.
The VBS bank, which collapsed in 2018, left thousands of depositors with substantial financial losses and its downfall was attributed to extensive corruption.
Mbalula added that should Simelane be found guilty, the ANC will not hesitate to take action against her.
“As the ANC, when the need arises for us to take action, we will take action. There are no holy cows.
“The renewal of the ANC must be guaranteed. Its agenda is rolling. We have measures in place on how we deal with those issues. We will use the checks and balances of the ANC as a movement,” he said.
Last week while in Parliament, Simelane assured South Africans that she will answer questions about corruption allegations levelled against her.
Her municipality was reported to have have invested more than R300 million in VBS.
She was expected to report back to MPs on questions they had about her department, but opposition party MPs first wanted clarity on reports that she had allegedly received money from VBS Mutual Bank.
“Permit me to start by making a commitment to this House on my availability in regards to the response needed by the House or the committee on the issue that are doing rounds,” Simelane told Parliament.
The Star