Mineral resources minister\u00a0Mosebenzi Zwane and energy minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson danced around several questions fired at them in a sitting of the National Assembly on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Zwane came under fire for a controversial statement\u00a0saying\u00a0that Cabinet had resolved to call a judicial inquiry into South Africa\u2019s banking system, following the decision by the country’s banks to withdraw banking facilities from the Gupta family.<\/p>\n
DA MP,\u00a0David Maynier asked the minister if he would resign, after the presidency distanced itself from Zwane’s\u00a0recommendation.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, energy minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson was called to answer allegations that politicians had benefited financially from the sale of South Africa’s strategic oil reserves in May.<\/p>\n
Read:\u00a0Government \u2018secretly\u2019 sold off R5 billion worth of SA oil reserves \u2013 and got ripped off<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n With both Zwane and Joemat-Petersson, no solid answers were given.<\/p>\n Zwane said that he ‘appreciated’ the question, but said it was not Maynier’s place to ask it.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a separation of powers and this matter – whether I resign or not – the matter belongs to the Cabinet. As a result, the Honourable Maynier cannot ask me whether I\u2019ll resign or not.\u201d<\/p>\n He then doubled down on his proposal, saying that many South Africans, not just the Gupta family, had suffered “abuse” at the hands of the banks.<\/p>\n \u201cSince that incident (the closure of the Guptas’ bank accounts), many have come forward saying they\u2019ve \u2018suffered\u2019 at the hand of banks,\u201d Zwane said. \u201cMany South Africans have been subjected to this kind of abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n Read:\u00a0Cabinet seeks judicial inquiry into banks after Gupta blacklisting<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Joemat-Petersson was also not forthcoming, saying that a full investigation into the sale of the oil reserves was ongoing. She noted that, in the future, before any sale of assets can go ahead, both Treasury and the auditor general will need to give the go-ahead.<\/p>\n Responding to a question asking if anyone within the ANC benefited from the sale – seeking a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ – Joemat-Petersson said she would not comment on gossip.<\/p>\n MPs who skip Parliament to be fined R1,000 a day<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Parliament secretary\u2019s splurge on luxury hotels and chauffeur driven cars<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\nMore on parliament<\/h3>\n