Cape Town - Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane on Wednesday said President Cyril Ramaphosa must make public his statement that he had agreed to submit to the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane over her investigation into the R500 000 donation paid by Bosasa chief executive Gavin Watson.
“[The] DA notes reports that President Ramaphosa will be voluntarily submitting a statement to the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, pertaining to her investigation into whether the president misled Parliament about a R500 000 ‘donation’ from Bosasa CEO, Gavin Watson,” said Maimane in a statement.
“In the interests of full transparency, the president should play open cards with the people of South Africa and make public his statement. South Africans must be fully assured that the President is not applying any undue pressure, or trying to influence a sensitive investigation into allegations of wrongdoing on his part."
On Tuesday, the Presidency confirmed in a statement that Ramaphosa would meet with Mkhwebane following a complaint made to her office alleging that the president violated the Executive Ethics Code by deliberately misleading Parliament about the donation and requesting an investigation into whether there was an improper relationship between the president and Bosasa.
Maimane said the allegations against the Ramaphosa were “serious” as he appeared to have lied to Parliament about receiving a R500 000 “donation” from a company that has allegedly been bribing African National Congress (ANC) officials for the better part of two decades.
“Moreover, Ramaphosa told Parliament that his son, Andile Ramaphosa, does lucrative paid work for Bosasa. All of this appears no different to every other bribe Bosasa paid to ANC officials," Maimane said.
“As the complainant in the matter, I will be requesting a meeting with the Public Protector, in order to submit evidence and receive a progress report into the matter. It is vital that this investigation is prioritised and receives the due consideration it deserves."
Last year, Ramaphosa admitted that the R500 000 paid to his son by the company was a donation towards his ANC presidential campaign.
In a letter to National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete, the president backtracked on an earlier reply he gave in Parliament and said the money paid to his son was for payment for his consultancy services that he provided for Bosasa, now known as African Global Operations.