ACDP Response to the Arms Deal Report

Reverend Kenneth Meshoe MP - ACDP President

Thursday, 15 November 2001


African Christian Democratic Party Leader Rev. Kenneth Meshoe responded to the arms deal report submitted to Parliament today, by saying that it was premature for the investigators to come to the Parliament and announce that government is innocent in the acquisition process.

Rev Meshoe said, “This announcement coincides with the State President’s remarks early in the year on the same issue when he said there was no evidence of wrongdoings in the arms acquisition. But the truth is that the investigations are still inconclusive and serious allegations are still being probed. Mr “Chippy” Shaik, for example, has been found by the investigators to have had a conflict of interests and yet he continued to be involved in the process. How do we know if Mr Shaik had links with some senior government officials or not ?”

The Reverend further said that the premature exoneration of the government, the exclusion of Judge Heath in the investigations and the treatment of the former ANC MP, Mr Fenstein calls into question the credibility of the report.

Of serious concern to Rev Meshoe was whether the Chapter 9 institutions, as remarked by Dr Buthelezi over the weekend, were in fact, independent. He questioned how Mr Ngcuka, a former high official in the ANC, appointed by government, could be expected to investigate the same government?

Rev Meshoe said, “The government can still be guilty of wrongdoing in law, even when it omitted to do its job properly, for example, by not preventing Mr Shaik from involvement in the acquisition process.”



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For more information please call Rev Meshoe at (021) 4033521 or ACDP Media Liaison Liza Bloemetje at 082 4781037