Forensic auditor back in the witness box

Forensic auditor Johan van der Walt began testifying on Monday about his probe into the relationship between Deputy President Jacob Zuma and his financial adviser Schabir Shaik and South Africa's R6-billion corvette deal.

Laying the foundations, he said that the then Minister of Defence Joe Modise had presented a white paper in 1996 on South Africa's defence requirements, which had received strong support from all political parties.

Modise had sent requests for further information to foreign countries, receiving 37 replies. A shortlist was compiled and in May 1998 a list of preferred suppliers had been drawn up by Sofcom (strategic office committee). Chippy Shaik, Schabir Shaik's brother, was not only on Sofcom, representing the department of defence, but was also Sofcom's co-chairman.

Chippy Shaik had been involved in a ministerial briefing in August of that year, when the preferred bidders were decided upon and the German Frigate Consortium (GFC), had been named preferred bidder for the corvette contract.

Van der Walt is expected to lead evidence that Shaik's Nkobi Holdings received shares in African Defence Systems, which also formed part of GFC, through Zuma's negotiation.

He is also expected to testify about evidence that then-deputy president Thabo Mbeki and then-president Nelson Mandela were aware of Zuma's involvement.

Read the full article here.


(26.10.2004)

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