CW and R2K continue to challenge Seriti findings

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Last month Corruption Watch (CW) and the Right2Know Campaign (R2K) launched a legal challenge to the findings of the Seriti Commission on the arms deal. This application was lodged at the High Court in October 2016. CW and R2K note that on 9 November 2016, the Constitutional Court dismissed an unrelated application to review the Seriti Commission’s findings, brought by a third party (Mr Terry Crawford-Browne).

The Constitutional Court did not make any findings on the merits of a review of the Seriti Commission but ruled that an application directly to the Constitutional Court is not in the public interest. In other words, an application must be made to the High Court in the usual manner. This is what Corruption Watch and Right2Know have done.

It is unfortunate that certain government spokespeople have suggested that this means the court has therefore cleared the Seriti Commission of any questions about its findings. This is not true. In fact, the president and his ministers of justice and constitutional development, defence, and trade and industry filed a notice to oppose this legal challenge via the State Attorney’s office on 16 November 2016.

The case brought by Corruption Watch and Right2Know continues, in a different court and with a different approach. This case is crucial to ensuring that the truth about the arms deal scandal is not whitewashed through a flawed commission, and to ensure future commissions are not compromised by similar procedural and other irregularities.

For more information about the case, please see our previous statement or visit ArmsDealFacts.com.

Download this press statement.