The much-anticipated state capture inquiry is due to start but could face major delays due to the lacklustre attitude of State Security Agency (SSA) staff, who are yet to issue state clearance certificates as they are “not taking this exercise seriously and making excuses”.
In a last-ditch effort to get the impasse resolved, deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo has asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene to ensure his commission staff obtain the security clearances needed to gain legal access to classified and confidential information and avoid delays.
Though the SSA maintains it is doing everything to ensure officials get the required clearance, spokesperson Brian Dube said the agency had put processes in place “to ensure that all members of the commission discharge their responsibilities, notwithstanding the challenges, some of which have been beyond our control.
“From the 77 cases received, 98% of the requests for provisional clearances have been dealt with,” he said.
“We are currently busy with upgrades and recent cases.”
Dube admitted, however: “We are experiencing challenges from some of the people we are dealing with, with some not taking this exercise seriously and making lots of excuses, thereby hindering the pace at which we would have liked to accelerate this effort.”
Commission secretary Dr Khotso de Wee has confirmed that Zondo wrote to Ramaphosa earlier in August requesting assistance.
“With regard to the security clearance process, to the best knowledge of the commission, the State Security Agency has not changed how it is dealing with the security clearance process since the chairperson wrote to the president at the beginning of August and asked for his intervention,” De Wee said in a written response.
“In fact, the secretary of the commission has not been contacted by the State Security Agency to give him any feedback since the last media briefing towards the end of July. The issue remains unresolved and is unacceptably delaying the work of the commission.”
De Wee said the inquiry was still on track for August, but warned some delays might be inevitable due to the SSA issue.Zondo first flagged the security clearance when he went to court in July to seek an extension of his commission’s time from six months to two years.
In the court application, which has come under fire from the Centre for the Advancement of the SA Constitution (Casac), Zondo revealed his inquiry had been delayed in getting off the ground by, among other things, ongoing problems with staff obtaining security clearances.
“This process is managed by the State Security Agency. There have been delays in the completion of the process,” Zondo said.
“I am told this is because of staff changes in the State Security Agency as well as requirements of members of the investigation team, and possibly other members of the commission, for top secret clearance.”
These delays appear at odds with state security minister Dipuo Lesatsi-Duba’s assurances previously that the SSA would “lend all the necessary support” to the commission.
In addition to the security clearance problems, Zondo’s legal bid to have his inquiry extended is also being opposed.
Casac has filed a response to that application, arguing that Zondo failed to make a proper case for why he needed more than six months, as recommended by former public protector Thuli Madonsela, to finalise his urgent investigation.
In his responding papers, Casac’s Lawson Naidoo says: “Unlike other commissions of inquiry, this project cannot afford to drag on for years.”
De Wee said Casac’s view was unfortunate.
“If the commission had not made out a proper case for an extension, the court would not have granted the order.
“In any event, anybody who appreciates the enormity of the issues of state capture cannot reasonably think the commission can finish everything before February 2020, which is the last month of the 24-month extension it is seeking.”
Presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko did not respond to a request for comment.