Question No. 623
Dr D T George (Democratic Alliance) to ask the Minister of Finance:
(1) Whether the investigation into governance failures at the Land and Agricultural Development Bank of South Africa (the Bank), has been concluded; if not, why not; if so, what were the (a) findings and (b) recommendations of the investigation;
(2) Whether individuals who received improper financial support from the Bank were identified; if not, why not; if so, who are these individuals;
(3) Whether any protection has been granted to the chief executive officer of the Bank; if not, under what conditions will such protection be granted to government officials or institutions; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
1. The investigation regarding alleged irregularities at the Land Bank is still under way. The Board is in charge of the investigation. All information emanating from the investigation will be verified and evaluated.
There are four forensic investigations that have been undertaken and concluded. These are:
* Agri-Black Economic Empowerment case no. 300/11/2008
* Land for Development Unit (LDFU) case no. SEOU ENQUIRY 01/12/2007
The above cases are with the South African Police Service’s (SAPS) Serious Economic Offences unit, Pretoria Branch.
* Micro Agricultural Finance Institutions case no. GP 69
* Information technology case no. GP 69
The above cases are with the Hawks (previous Scorpions).
The report on all investigations has been forwarded to the appropriate authorities who have indicated that they still need to probe further to supplement the forensic reports.
2. The forensic audit report alluded to suspicious transactions with evidence implicating some individuals within the Bank. These are not conclusive and still require further probing. The reports were handed over to the relevant authorities for further investigation to determine whether these individuals received improper financial support from the Land Bank. The names of the individuals to be charged by the SAPS can only be released once SAPS authorises such release.
3. No protection has been granted to the Land Bank’s chief executive officer. The issue of protection of government officials or institutions has not arisen so far.
Issued by: National Treasury
25 August 2009
