Decisive action will be taken against any ANC member who might be behind the death threats against two MPs, the party said at the weekend.
“Should any of those behind the threats be found to be ANC members, the organisation will not hesitate to take stern action against them as we regard such conduct to be un-ANC,” spokesman Jackson Mthembu said in a statement.
ANC MPs Ben Turok and Fazela Mahomed had received death threats.
The pair are parliament’s ethics committee’s joint chair and registrar and were involved in the investigation against former communications minister Dina Pule. The committee found Pule guilty of failing to disclose the interests of her romantic partner, Phosane Mngqibisa.
He benefited financially from the sponsorship of last year’s information and communications technology event, the ICT Indaba, which her department hosted in Cape Town.
Pule consistently denied during panel hearings that Mngqibisa was her permanent companion, insisting he was a “friend”. However, testimony showed that he accompanied her on various trips abroad and had shared her hotel suites.
Mthembu said: “We view these threats in a serious light as they are clearly calculated to undermine the authority of the parliament and its functional organs and to paralyses a parliamentary sanctioned process,” he said.
He called on police and other law enforcement agencies to investigate the matter and bring to book those who were behind the threats.
“This disregard for lawful processes and malicious interference with parliamentary process must not be tolerated so that parliament and parliamentarians can discharge their work and responsibilities without fear or favour.”
Mthembu commended parliament and the ethics committee for having acted decisively to restore the integrity of the institution. — Sapa
- See also: Turok threatened during Pule probe
