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Mkhwebane announces 'suspicion of money laundering' in relation to Bosasa donation to Ramaphosa

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Mkhwebane announces 'suspicion of money laundering' in relation to Bosasa donation to Ramaphosa

Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane
Photo by Reuters
Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane

19th July 2019

By: African News Agency

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Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane on Friday said there was an improper relationship between President Cyril Ramaphosa, his family and African Global Operations (AGO), formerly known as Bosasa.

Releasing her findings during a media briefing in Pretoria on the R500 000 donation from Bosasa to his campaign to become African National Congress (ANC) president in 2017, Mkhwebane said there was prima facie evidence that money laundering could have taken place.

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The money, said Mkhwebane, was transferred to the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation account from where it was also transferred to other beneficiaries.

Mkhwebane said the money went through several intermediaries, instead of a going straight to the CR17 campaign.

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At the time of the donation, Ramaphosa was the deputy president.

While Ramaphosa's campaign team insisted Ramaphosa did not know the identities of the donors, Mkhwebane said she had proof of a banquet attended by Ramaphosa and his benefactors where he would have had the opportunity to meet them.

She further found the president had abused his position and violated the executive ethics code by enriching himself when he accepted the money from Bosasa - one of the companies at the centre of State capture allegations.

The Public Protector found that the benefit to Ramaphosa was of a "material nature".

"I have evidence which indicates that some of the money collected through the CR17 campaign trust account was also into the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation account from where it was also transferred to other beneficiaries," she said.

Mkhwebane said Ramaphosa was bound by the Code of Ethical Conduct and Disclosure of Members' Interests for Assembly and Permanent Council Members, to declare such financial interests.

She also found Ramaphosa deliberately misled Parliament.

"The allegations that on 06 November 2019 during question session in Parliament, President Ramaphosa deliberately misled the National Assembly, is substantiated," said Mkhwebane.

"He deliberately misled Parliament, in that he should have allowed himself sufficient time to research on a well informed response," she said at a press conference in Pretoria.

By misleading Parliament, Ramaphosa had also violated the Constitution, said Mkhwebane.

"I therefore find President Ramaphosa's conduct as referred to above, although ostensibly in good faith, to be inconsistent with his office as a member of cabinet and therefore in violation of section 96(1) of the Constitution," her report found.

Last year, during a question-and-answer session in Parliament, Ramaphosa said his son, Andile, benefited to the tune of R500 000 from a contract with Bosasa.

Ramaphosa later retracted his answer, writing to the National Assembly saying he inadvertently provided incorrect information and that the half a million rand was in fact donated to his campaign to become ANC president.

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