Speaker, the DA welcomes President Jacob Zuma's decision to appoint a commission of inquiry to investigate allegations of wrongdoing in respect of the Arms Deal. The Arms Deal is possibly the biggest corruption scandal in the history of South Africa. There is therefore a distinct danger that the commission of inquiry will be controlled and contained to reduce the fallout for the ANC. It is therefore imperative that the commission is given real teeth and the resources to get to the bottom of what really happened in the arms deal.
The commission must therefore have wide-ranging terms of reference. It should investigate whether there was corruption in all aspects of the Arms Deal, including the acquisition and the offsets. It should investigate whether there was any attempt to cover up and prevent a proper investigation into the Arms Deal. It should have powers to subpoena witnesses and documentation and it should be sufficiently resourced to properly evaluate and investigate the mountain of arms-deal-related material.
The commission of inquiry must investigate not just the alleged corruption, but also the alleged cover-up. The devil will ultimately be in the details and the DA therefore calls on the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development to announce the terms of reference and the composition of that commission of inquiry as soon as possible.