... which specify the ethical conduct expected of members which is to inspire trust and confidence in our Parliament in accordance with the values of our Constitution.
I want to emphasise that the imperative of ensuring compliance with ethical standards arises from the nature of Parliament itself. It is the pinnacle of democratic representation. An act of ethical misconduct by a member constitutes an infringement on the right of the other members - of all of us - to be seen as part of an institution with the highest integrity.
The committee resolved to hold hearings to enable the hon Botha to respond to the allegations and appointed a panel of six members, consisting of members of the ANC, the DA, and the IFP. These included me, as chairperson, the hon Lemias Mashile, the hon Anchen Dreyer, the hon Gerhard Koornhof, the hon Jacobus van der Merwe, and the hon Winifred Magadla. The committee was assisted by the Registrar, Ms Fazela Mahomed, and the hon Botham, MP was assisted at the hearings by the hon J B Sibanyoni, MP.
In this specific case the charges brought by the Registrar were, firstly, nondisclosure of benefits received from Trifecta Investment Holdings as required by item 7(g) of the Code of Conduct. Secondly, regarding the allegations of nondisclosure of the benefits, Ms Botha wilfully misled the committee on the value of the benefits received by submitting a sworn statement which was false and misleading.
The panel appointed by the committee decided to hold the hearings in closed sessions in accordance with Rule 125 of the Code of Conduct and section 59(2) of the Constitution of South Africa. We received advice from senior counsel that this was necessary and possible.
The findings of the committee are as follows. Firstly, the renovations done on her house constitute a benefit in accordance with clause 7(g) of the Code of Conduct. Secondly, the 10% shares from Trifecta was also a benefit in terms of clause 7(a). Lastly, the affidavit submitted under oath on the loan agreement cited R500 000, while the costs were more than R1,2 million. This was wilful misleading of Parliament.
The committee is unanimous - and I want to emphasise unanimous - in its agreement on these findings and resolves that Ms Botha is guilty of the breaches for, firstly, nondisclosure of the registrable interests and, secondly, wilfully misleading Parliament.
We therefore agreed on the following penalty which is the maximum we can impose under the Rules. The penalty imposed, as stipulated in the Joint Rules of Parliament: Rule 19 in the Code of Conduct, is (a) a reprimand, and (b) a fine of 30 days' salary.
We ask the House to approve this report as published in the ATCs. I thank you. [Applause.]
There was no debate.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY Chairperson I move:
That the report be adopted.
Declarations of vote: