[English Translation]

Former Minister Joe Modise probably turned a few times in his grave this week.

Because this week in the shadow of Nkandla, Marikana and Oscar Pistorius important stuff  is being said. Things had been kept silent.

Things that could forever remain secret.

Fortunately, as is the custom with most secrets, the wheels start turning.

Like when former Lieutenant-General Pierre Steyn gave his testimony this week before the Seriti commission.

For 15 years Steyn had remained silent about what he saw and heard as Secretary for Defence.

This week he talked about how the defence forces's tender procedures were circumvented by Modise and the man who actually beat the drum, Chippy Shaik.

About how Shaik - the army's chief of procurement - was himself in positions of power and got Steyn (and its critique) cut out of the process.

Listen carefully to his testimony because Steyn's words are an important part of the chapter entitled "How the party has sold his soul" in the ANC's history book.

To borrow from my colleague Jacques Pauw: Steyn was in the heart of the whore.

And this week he could without hesitation tell how things started to go wrong in the arms deal, which has now cost the country R90 billion.

The ANC could have built many RDP houses or schools or clinics with that money.

But no, fighter jets and submarines that we did not need were rather on the shopping list.

Of course, the ANC and its leadership are in the midst of the scandal and all indications are that the party desperately needed money for its 1999 election campaign.

So the big scramble to get millions from the treasury to pour into the bank accounts of the British, French, Germans and Italians.

The arms were the poison in our drinking water.

It was then that the ANC finally relinquished its image as a "holy" liberation movement.

The arms have some fundamental change in a corrupt political organization that has fiercely tried to cling to power.

This opened the door for Oilgate, Kebblegate and Nkandla.

The reality is that there are likely to be very few actions after the commission's work.

Too many people have died, too much power has shifted and the corrupt dollars are long since blown.

Pres. Jacob Zuma will not be prosecuted as long as he is the leader of the ANC.

Shaik - brother of Schabir - knows too many secrets to see the inside of a courtroom if there is evidence that the Germans paid him millions in "schmiergeld".

Yet the testimony of people like Steyn is very important so we can never say we did not know.

So the history books can not be silent about the ANC's betrayal of its people when they needed bread.

With acknowledgement to Adriaan Basson and Beeld.

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General Steyn is testifying about it 15 years later.

Very good for him.

Everything he says is both relevant and true.

He is also now a qualified attorney.

But I testified about much of this before the Public Protector in August 2001. That's 13 years ago.

In June 1999 wrote the formal letter to the Auditor-General which initiated the investigation against Chippy Shaik which then netted Schabir Shaik and then Thomson-CSF and Zuma.

Schabir is out of jail still playing a lot of golf and earning a lot of money.

Thomson-CSF (now Thales International) is not blacklisted and is making a lot of money.

Zuma is not in jail and is spending a lot of other peoples' money.

Chippy is not in jail is digging diamonds and semi-precious stones and earning a lot of money.

Chippy did however give back his PhD in mechanical engineering.

15 years later I am spending a lot of my time and my money on the Arms Procurement Commission.

Maar, so gaan die lewe.
 

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[Afrikaans Original]

 

Die ANC se grootste verraad

Beeld
Adriaan Basson
16 May 2014
http://www.beeld.com/opinie/2014-05-16-die-anc-se-grootste-verraad


Oudmin. Joe Modise het dié week seker ’n paar keer in sy graf omgedraai.

Want in die skadu van Nkandla, Marikana en Oscar Pistorius is belangrike goed hierdie week gesê. Dinge wat lank verswyg is.

Dinge wat vir ewig geheim kon bly.

Gelukkig, soos die gewoonte is met die meeste geheime, het die wiel begin gedraai.

Soos toe oud-lt.genl. Pierre Steyn sy getuienis hierdie week voor die Seriti-kommissie begin lewer het.

15 jaar lank moes Steyn swyg oor dit wat hy gesien en gehoor het as sekretaris van verdediging.

Dié week kon hy praat oor hoe die weermag se tenderprosedures omseil is deur Modise en die man wat eintlik die trom geslaan het: Chippy Shaik.

Oor hoe Shaik – wat die weermag se hoof van aankope was – homself in posisies van mag gekry het en Steyn (en sy kritiek) uit die proses kon sny.

Luister mooi na sy getuienis, want Steyn se woorde is ’n belangrike deel van die hoofstuk getiteld “Hoe die party sy siel verkoop het” in die ANC se geskiedenisboek.

Om te leen by my kollega ­Jacques Pauw: Steyn was in die hart van die hoer.

En dié week kon hy sonder skroom vertel hoe dinge begin verkeerd loop het in die wapentransaksie, wat die land nou al by die R90 miljard gekos het.

Die ANC kon nogal baie Hop-huise of skole of klinieke gebou het met daardie geld.

Maar nee, vegvliegtuie en duikbote wat ons nie nodig gehad het nie, was eerder op die inkopielys.

Natuurlik was die ANC en sy leiers midde-in die skandaal en is alle aanduidings dat die party dringend geld nodig gehad het vir sy 1999-verkiesingsveldtog.

Daarom die groot geskarrel om miljoene rande uit die fiskus te stort in die bankrekenings van die Britte, Franse, Duitsers en Italianers.

Die wapenskandaal was die gif in ons drinkwater.

Dis tóé dat die ANC finaal afstand gedoen het van sy beeld as ’n “heilige” bevrydingsbeweging.

Die wapenskandaal het die party fundamenteel verander in ’n korrupte politieke organisasie wat verbete probeer vasklou aan mag.

Dit het die deur oopgemaak vir Oilgate, Kebblegate en Nkandla.

Die waarheid is dat bitter min stappe waarskynlik gedoen sal word ná afloop van die kommissie se werk.

Te veel mense is al dood, te veel mag het geskuif en die korrupte dollars is lankal geblaas.

Pres. Jacob Zuma sal nie vervolg word solank hy ANC-leier is nie.

Shaik – die broer van Schabir – ken te veel geheime om die binnekant van ’n hofsaal te sien, al is daar bewyse dat die Duitsers hom miljoene rande se “schmiergeld” betaal het.

Tog is die getuienis van mense soos Steyn bitter belangrik sodat ons nooit kan sê ons het nie geweet nie.

Sodat die geskiedenisboeke nie kan swyg oor die ANC se verraad teen sy mense toe hulle dienslewering broodnodig gehad het nie.