Mashaba taken to task for ‘falsely’ implicating Ace Magashule

The African Congress for Transformation (ACT) has come out with guns blazing, after ActionSA made unsubstantiated claims about its leader Dr. Ace Magashule, implicating him in corruption and contravention of the Public Finance Management Act.

On Wednesday, the Herman Mashaba-led party published a list of what it called the “Top 10 Most Wanted Prosecutions” in South Africa’s political arena. The top 10 individuals include ACT President-General Dr. Ace Magashule, former President Jacob Zuma, EFF President Julius Malema, and several others.

Mashaba said his party plans to ensure that those high-profile individuals they accuse of corruption are investigated and swiftly prosecuted when they enter into government – something that is extremely unlikely judging by ActionSA’s popularity.

He further claimed that a long list of evidence exists for the accused politicians to be criminally prosecuted.

“These individuals should be prosecuted based on clear and damning evidence available, but instead, we have seen delay after delay, excuse after excuse,” said Mashaba.

In a statement issued on Saturday, ACT said the remarks by Mashaba infringe upon the fundamental human rights and dignity of individuals, indicating that they are “potentially defamatory.”

READ MORE: ACT reiterates its stance on asbestos case against Magashule.

“This statement is completely false; the President-General [Magashule] has consistently appeared before the courts without any absence. Magashule has expressed concerns about the delays mostly caused by the NPA. He did not abscond or miss any of the scheduled court appearances, unless ActionSA can offer proof to the contrary.

“It is regrettable that Herman Mashaba and his party have chosen to employ character assassination tactics just a few weeks before the elections,” ACT said.

Moreover, ACT challenged ActionSA to provide the NPA with all the necessary evidence and documentation pertaining to the Asbestos Case and the Estina Dairy Farm Case allegedly involving Magashule.

“ActionSA appears to possess compelling evidence that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has been at pains to acquire. Consequently, we urge ActionSA to collaborate with the police and the NPA by surrendering all the evidence they possess in order to conclude this investigation. In the event they fail to provide this evidence, the President-General hereby informs ActionSA that he reserves all his legal rights over their defamatory post, which has accumulated an estimated 115,000 views.”

In addition, ACT took the opportunity to remind the public of Mashaba’s “false statements” in relation to the publication of his controversial book.

“He is an established imposter and a proven fraud who bribes people to write favourable stories about him. What type of President will he embody? If he were willing to spend R12,5m to pay writers for his book, one can only imagine the extreme measures he would take if he were to become the president of the country (a quite unlikely scenario).

“This person exhibits patterns of a president who would buy journalists to either produce favourable coverage of himself or to defame his adversaries. He will bribe the judges to disregard matters that have an impact on him; he exhibits the same behaviour as the current president. Mashaba should disclose the source of the R12,5 million he paid to Prince Mashele for writing his books.

“Additionally, he should present evidence that the entire R12,5 million was actually used for the book. Esteemed writers in the country have expressed skepticism, stating that it is impossible to write a book at a cost of R12,5m and only get a return of approximately R3 million. A possible case of money laundering involving Mashaba warrants a thorough investigation.

“Once we assume office next month, we will diligently examine this transaction and hold Mashaba accountable,” ACT stated.