Johannesburg - EFF leader Julius Malema is expected to hold a round table with journalists as part his campaign to clear the air on his and the party’s alleged involvement in the VBS Mutual Bank saga.
Malema said on Wednesday that he had invited five journalists from various media houses to ask him questions regarding the VBS matter following the reemergence of questions regarding the EFF’s involvement with VBS.
The round table will be held at noon.
The looting of VBS Bank came into the spotlight in 2018 following the release of a report commissioned by the SA Reserve Bank.
The investigation was led by Advocate Terry Motau which found that close to R2 billion was looted from the bank with the help of executives. The report titled "The Great Bank Heist" was released in October 2018.
VBS Bank was formed to be a savings facility in 1982 and saw many individuals channel their savings to the bank. This included pensioners who had their lifesaving disappear after news of the looting came to light.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/samkelemaseko?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@samkelemasekoasked about investigations regarding me and or the EFF in relation to VBS. This is even though there was no mention of myself or the EFF by NPA
— Julius Sello Malema (@Julius_S_Malema)
A total of 20 municipalities across the country had illegally invested over a billion rands to the bank, with some only able to recover a few of the funds.
Over R1 billion was stolen and the funds were channelled to various bank accounts and saw various politicians allegedly benefit. Some of those alleged benefactors were ANC politicians and the EFF has also been accused of corruptly benefiting from the looting.
Last week, the Hawks and the NPA confirmed the arrests of seven men linked to the looting of the bank.
Hawks head Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya confirmed Hawks had conducted raids on June 17 on 10 properties in Gauteng and Limpopo. Seven men, who include former VBS executives, were arrested.
They appeared at the Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court last week Thursday. The case has been postponed until October.
The men face 47 charges which include; five charges of racketeering, 12 counts of theft, 7 charges of fraud, 15 charges for corruption and 7 for money laundering. Lebeya said they could not reveal the suspects' name until they appear in court.
The EFF has been accused of benefiting financially from the funds stolen at VBS.
Lebeya had declined to comment on questions of whether he had been in communication with Floyd Shivambu the EFF's deputy president, whose brother had been linked to a company that received funds from VBS Bank.