Former state security minister and African National Congress (ANC) MP Bongani Bongo was released on bail of R5 000 after a brief court appearance in Cape Town yesterday on corruption charges.
He was arrested by the Hawks early yesterday.
Bongo is currently the chair of the parliamentary portfolio committee for home affairs. It is alleged that he bribed the evidence leader in the parliamentary enquiry into corruption at state-owned companies, Eskom, Denel, and Transnet in 2017.
Bongo served in the Cabinet from October 2017 until February 2018, when Cyril Ramaphosa replaced Jacob Zuma as President.
ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said in a statement after Bongo’s court appearance: ‘As the ANC, we will not comment on the allegations labelled (sic) against Cde Bongo as we want to allow the law to take its course.’
This could be the first move against individuals who were involved in state capture and the related corruption of the Zuma years, but it remains to be seen if Bongo will be a sacrificial lamb or if real action will be taken against those who broke the law.