Madam Deputy Speaker, Cope calls on the President of the country to take the lead and instruct the Hawks to reopen the investigation into the Arms Deal. [Interjections.]
A revelation was made in the press statement issued by the Saab Chief Executive Officer, Hkan Buskhe, on Thursday. In it he admitted that an internal company investigation had revealed that about R24 million had been paid by BAE systems to Sanip (Pty) Ltd, which in turn handed the money over to a local consultant. These transactions, however, were never entered into the accounts of Sanip (Pty) Ltd and the payments took place without the knowledge of Saab.
The fact that the bribe was paid has now been established. What remains to be established through thorough forensic investigation is who the recipient of that bribe in South Africa was. [Interjections.] This is important in order to clear the names of all those who did not receive bribes.
The SA Reserve Bank, Sars and the Auditor-General must now also get involved. Today South Africa knows for sure that the ruling party has not been transparent and that it was trying desperately to conceal the truth from the public. It is now incumbent on the President to stop hiding and to let the law take its course. Thank you, Madam. [Time expired.] [Applause.]