CAPE TOWN – The South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) on Sunday welcomed the transfer of certain priority investigations from the Office of the Public Protector (OPP) to the Judicial Commission on State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the public sector.

In a statement, Sanco said it agreed with the OPP that the transfer of the investigations will expedite the work of the commission, curb duplication and reduce costs.

“All investigations that are covered by the terms of reference that established the commission must be centralised so that the high-level expertise, as well as, depth of legal, investigative and forensic auditing assigned the responsibility is optimally used to serve the course of justice,” said Sanco spokesperson Jabu Mahlangu.

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According to the notice of intent that Sanco received from the OPP on May 25, the transfer follows engagements between Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane and the chairperson of the commission, Deputy Chief Justice Zondo.

Mahlangu said that South Africans are eagerly awaiting the conclusion of the state capture probe in the hopes that it will restore confidence in public institutions and contribute towards the country’s economic recovery.

“We owe it to future generations to reclaim good governance, reposition state-owned enterprises for the developmental role outlined in the National Development Plan while ensuring that every cent that was looted through state capture is recouped and those responsible held accountable,” he said.

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Sanco had complained to the OPP and requested a probe into the awarding of R1.8-billion tenders to Impulse International (Pty) Limited (Impulse), an entity in which Koketso Choma, stepdaughter of former Eskom acting group CEO Matshela Koko held financial business interests.

It was alleged that Impulse, a multi-national engineering and project management consultancy and technical service provider was irregularly awarded eight lucrative contracts by Eskom while Koko was group executive of the generation, which had a direct influence over Supply Chain Management (SCM) processes.

Other investigations referred to the commission include complaints lodged by other parties that alleged among others that the Gupta family benefited substantially from state contracts because of close relationships that they had with former President Jacob Zuma, certain cabinet ministers, chairpersons of state-owned enterprises, CEOs as well as members of their families and business associates.

African News Agency