DA approaches FBI to probe Ramaphosa money laundering claims

This follows revelations by former spy boss Arthur Fraser that a large amount of money in foreign currency was stolen at Ramaphosa’s farm in February 2020.

Ramaphosa, who has denied any criminal wrongdoing, has refused to divulge any details of the burglary.  

During a media briefing at the DA’s headquarters in Johannesburg on Tuesday, party leader John Steenhuisen said they have taken nine steps to ensure that Ramaphosa is held accountable.

“We have requested that the FBI considers investigating the source of the funds and whether the money was brought into South Africa legitimately and declared to the appropriate authorities. 

"We have written to the Financial Intelligence Centre requesting that they investigate the various alleged financial transactions that followed the theft, including the purchase of several luxury vehicles in cash.”

Steenhuisen says they are not calling for Ramaphosa's head yet.

"The longer the president stays silent on this saga the more people will call on him to step aside, we are not calling on him to step aside yet we want to give him the benefit of the doubt and come clean and tell his side of the story. He cannot stay silent on this matter."

READ THE FULL NINE STEPS HERE:

1.*Federal Bureau of Investigations 

We have written to the United States FBI (Pretoria Field Office) to request that they investigate allegations of possible money laundering by the President.

Specifically, we have requested that the FBI considers investigating the source of the funds and whether the money was brought into South Africa legitimately and declared to the appropriate authorities.

We have recommended that the ledgers or journals which would have recorded the alleged sale of wild game at auction be requested from the president, to determine the identities of those involved in the suspicious cash transactions.

A cash transaction within South Africa involving $4 million is deeply suspicious, and more so since the cash was then hidden in furniture, and its theft investigated off-the-record and covered up.

 2.*Financial Intelligence Centre

We have written to the Financial Intelligence Centre requesting that they investigate the various alleged financial transactions that followed from the theft, including the purchase of several luxury vehicles in cash.

The FIC has a legislative mandate to identify the proceeds of crime in terms of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act of 2001.

We have asked the following questions of the FIC:

1. Did the FIC detect any of these cash transactions in its systems?

2. If so, what steps did the FIC take to determine if these transactions were legitimate or the proceeds of crime?

3. If the FIC failed to detect these transactions, does its monitoring systems need a revamp?

4. If the FIC failed to detect these transactions, will the entity investigate this matter now that the information is in the public domain?

 3.*Tax Fraud Department (SARS) 

We have directed these same questions to the Tax Fraud Department at the South African Revenue Services.

 4.*Secretary of Cabinet 

We have written to Ms Phindile Baleni, the Secretary of Cabinet in the Office of the Presidency to request sight of President Ramaphosa’s declaration of financial interests as required by the Executive Members Ethics Act No. 82 of 1998 and the Executive Ethics Code.

Specifically, we want to determine if the business activities on the President’s Phala Phala game farm have been declared as financial interests, and when such declarations were made.

 5. Public Protector 

We have written to Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka, the Acting Public Protector, to lay a formal complaint in terms of the Executive Members’ Ethics Act and to request her to investigate the alleged breaches of the Executive Ethics Code.

President Ramaphosa may have breached the code by failing to report the theft, which he was by law obliged to do, and by using public resources, specifically the VIP protection unit within SAPS, to track and bring back his stolen dollars.

 6 *National Police Commissioner 

We have written to National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola asking him the following questions:

1. Why was the Major-General Wally Rhoode sent to Namibia?

2. Why was no formal case opened?

3. Why was the theft covered up?

4. What did the investigation cost taxpayers?

 7.*Parliament Committee on Justice and Correctional Services 

We have requested the chairperson of the portfolio committee on justice and correctional services, Mr Gratitude Magwanishe, to summon the Minister of Justice to explain why South Africa didn’t respond with a case number, and therefore assets had to be released. He has agreed in principle, pending permission from Parliament.

 8.*Minister of Public Works 

We have written to the Minister of Public Works about the subsequent security upgrades at the President’s Phala Phala farm, and whether they were paid for, in full or part, using public funds.

 9. Parliament Committee on Police 

We have written to the Tina Joemat-Pettersson, the chairperson of the portfolio committee overseeing the police, requesting that Major-General Wally Rhoode appear before the committee.

In his affidavit, Mr Arthur Fraser alleges that the President sent Rhoode, the head of his VIP protection unit to travel to Namibia to conduct a secret investigation and/or interrogation, into those who were allegedly involved in the burglary.

It is possible, indeed likely, that this private investigation of a theft that was never formally reported to SAPS was done at the taxpayers’ expense.

Mr Rhoode needs to provide an account to Parliament of what had occurred in relation to him and/or the protection unit travelling to Namibia on the President’s instructions.

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