Ramaphosa will testify at state capture commission, Zondo says

The Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has once again said that President Cyril Ramaphosa will take the stand at the state capture commission of inquiry. While Ramaphosa has himself said he would avail himself to testify, that seems to have been lost in all the other controversies that have emerged from the commission. This includes his predecessor Jacob Zuma’s countless delays to answer for serious corruption allegations, of which he is at the centre.

Speaking on eNCA’s Power to Truth on Sunday, 20 December, Zondo, who presides over the state capture commission, confirmed once again that Ramaphosa will appear.

Zondo, however did not get into detail, including even a timeline or what his state capture appearance will even pertain to.

“The president will be coming. I asked the president before the end of 2018, I said to him ‘Mr President this commission cannot finish its work without you coming to give evidence’ and without the ruling party coming to give evidence because they have been around when a lot of these things were happening,” he said.

Having been Zuma’s deputy during his tumultuous presidency, some say Ramaphosa is just as to blame for the level of graft that has consumed the country’s most critical institutions including Eskom, the SABC and South African Airways (SAA), which is currently undergoing a restructuring.

The president will likely be asked about his role in the entire saga, particularly what he knew and why he failed to take action.

State Capture: Not enough people testifying, says Zondo

Zondo has expressed discontent in the number of witnesses (or lack thereof) who have so far volunteered to testify at the state capture commission, which concluded proceedings for the year with the appearance of former Eskom CEO Matshela Koko.

“I’m disappointed that the numbers are very low of those who have come forward. It’s really a pity because there can be no doubt that there must be DGs and former DGs (Directors-General) and ministers and former ministers who must know a lot about what has happened,” Zondo further said.

Zondo noted that it was unlikely that many current and former ministers would volunteer to appear before the commission but said he was confident that all that would change.