DA’s Spokesperson on Social Development, Nazley Sharif, along with DA National Spokesperson, Jan de Villiers (centre), and DA Deputy Chief Whip, Baxolile Nodada.
Image: Theolin Tembo
The DA has followed suit, like ActionSA, and has filed criminal charges against Minister of Social Development, Sisisi Tolashe, for deliberately deceiving authorities surrounding the registration of donated vehicles from the Chinese Embassy.
The charges were filed by DA’s Spokesperson on Social Development, Nazley Sharif, along with DA National Spokesperson, Jan de Villiers, and DA Deputy Chief Whip, Baxolile Nodada, on Thursday.
Tolashe has been at the centre of a recent media storm after it emerged that she not only accepted the gifts, but also gave them to her two children to use in their personal capacity, with vehicle registrations reflecting a clear change of ownership to the Tolashe siblings.
“Two scenarios exist: Firstly, the vehicles were donated to the minister personally, and she failed to disclose this donation to Parliament and subsequently lied to Parliament about the alleged non-disclosure.
“Secondly, that the vehicles were donated to the ANCWL, and that the minister fraudulently registered these vehicles in the names of her children to shield the assets from attachment by creditors of the ANC,” De Villiers said.
“We have provided the SAPS with sufficient evidence that warrants investigation.”
Parties have made calls to President Cyril Ramaphosa to take action against Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe.
Image: Jairus Mmutle / GCIS
According to De Villiers, the DA views these allegations in an extremely serious light and considers that any attempt to deceive Parliament or manipulate creditors for personal or improper gain represents a direct assault on the rule of law.
The specific charges are perjury, for lying to Parliament, and fraud:
“The DA has already acted against Tolashe, including filing an Ethics Committee complaint over allegedly misleading Parliament about the appointment of her director-general, and a Public Protector complaint involving the same official.
“We also wrote to the president to clarify whether the minister obtained the required approval to accept and retain two luxury motor cars. We will also ask questions about the proceeds of the sale of the motor vehicles and where the money is.
“She will have to account both to Parliament in the course of a full inquiry and to those investigating authorities. We demand a full and independent investigation so that the full might of the law is enforced,” De Villiers said.
Sharif added that they will also be seeking a parliamentary inquiry into the matter.
“We wrote to the president on the 8th of April asking the president if she had declared the cars to him. We still have not had a response, and just recently, we went to the Portfolio Committee on Social Development to request a parliamentary inquiry.
“Now, this parliamentary inquiry is going to be very, very important because social development is a significant portfolio. It's a portfolio that is very important as it deals with the most vulnerable people in South Africa.
Sharif strongly criticised the ongoing presence of a politician involved in scandals, arguing it's unacceptable when so many citizens struggle with poverty.
“It cannot be that we have a political principle that continuously finds herself in the midst of scandals, in the midst of chaos, when many citizens struggle to afford necessities,” Sharif stated.
She emphasised that the focus must be on the people of South Africa and those needing assistance, not on individuals or political parties.
“We have to show that this is about South Africans. It's not about political parties. It's not about us as individuals. It's about the people of South Africa and those who need assistance.”
Finally, Sharif expressed hope that a parliamentary inquiry would be launched, appealing to other political parties for support.
“Now, when the parliamentary inquiry comes, we are hoping that other political parties will vote with us to get the parliamentary inquiry, and we invite these political parties to join the Social Development committee meetings, where it will be raised, and that we get this parliamentary inquiry because enough is enough,” she concluded.
ActionSA MP, Dereleen James, previously opened a case of corruption against the minister at Cape Town police station.
Image: Supplied
On Wednesday, ActionSA’s Dereleen James issued a statement, calling out the DA for wasting “police resources and time by laying charges on a matter that is already being probed”.
“If the DA or any other party is genuinely concerned about the merits, rather than clawing for relevance, they are welcome to engage us, and we will supply the contact details of the relevant Hawks officials so that any supplementary information they may have can be submitted directly into an investigation that is already under way, rather than duplicating a process for the sake of political optics.”
Nodada said that, unlike ActionSA’s case, which has one charge, they have two charges in their case, but that ultimately, “it is not about the DA or ActionSA” but about getting to the bottom of what has been done wrong.
“It is more about getting to the bottom of the truth, and that nobody is above the law.”
Spokesperson for the Department of Social Development, Sandy Godlwana, said the minister has taken note of recent public reports, and that she “remains fully committed to cooperating with both organisational and parliamentary processes to allow these matters to be addressed through the appropriate channels”.
“The minister trusts that these processes will provide the necessary clarity,” Godlwana said.
“The Department of Social Development reiterates that this matter is being handled through the appropriate mechanisms and will refrain from further public comment while the processes are under way.”
theolin.tembo@inl.co.za