President Cyril Ramaphosa has requested a briefing from Justice Minister Thembi Simelane after allegations of her involvement in VBS Mutual Bank loan scandal of more than R500,000.
This comes after reports that Simelane allegedly received a loan of R575,600 from the Gundo Wealth Solutions in 2016, when she was still the mayor of the Polokwane Municipality.
Simelane who served as mayor for the municipality between 2014 and 2021, until she was appointed as justice minister in June this year, allegedly took the loan to purchase a coffee shop in Sandton.
The company, which is owned by Rallion Razwinane, was directly linked to the unlawful investments of municipal funds into the now defunct VBS Mutual Bank during her time as the city mayor.
But, according to reports, Simelane said “the transaction was completely above board.”
Razwinane, the company's owner, is currently on trial for fraud, corruption, and money laundering for his role as a commission agent linking municipalities, including Polokwane Municipality, with the VBS.
In response to the allegations against Simelane, the presidency spokesperson Vincent Mangwenya said Ramaphosa had noted the reports “with concern.”
“The President has requested a detailed report and briefing from the Minister on the matter,” said Magwenya.
Meanwhile, political parties including, the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Congress of the People (COPE) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have since demanded urgent removal of Simelane amid the scandal.
ActionSA also said it had filed an urgent complaint to the Public Protector Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka to probe the allegations levelled against Simelane.
ActionSA’s parliamentary caucus leader, Athol Trollip said they would be writing to Ramaphosa to inform him of their displeasure over this matter.
Civic society organisations including the Freedom Under Law (FUL), the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Judges Matter and Defend Our Democracy in a joint statement, also expressed their concern.
“It is crucial that the minister responds fully and transparently to these allegations. Perceptions of corruption and conflicts of interest cause significant harm to public confidence in governance institutions and the rule of law.
“The minister carries political responsibility for key law enforcement agencies which not only are at the forefront of the fight against corruption, but are also involved in investigating and prosecuting the collapse of VBS bank itself, a critical entity in the allegations against her,” the organisations said.
The organisations called on Simelane to fully account for her involvement in the VBS loan scandal.
IOL Politics