Former president Jacob Zuma put the abuse of state institutions for political gain on steroids, says former intelligence chief Moe Shaik.
Shaik was one of the staunch backers of Zuma in the run-up to the Polokwane battle, where Thabo Mbeki was defeated in his campaign for a third term as president of the ANC.
Mbeki's faction was accused of abusing public institutions to thwart political competition and criticism.
"Now, it is absolutely clear to me that President Zuma put the abuse of state institutions on steroids ... if you look at it, the police, all the institutions of civilian accountability for the police, the defence, and the intelligence collapsed under President Zuma," Shaik said.
"The collapse of the intelligence service was evident in the recent riots where more than 300 people died and businesses were looted in what the government called an insurrection."
Shaik has welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa's decision to place the intelligence service under the presidency, instead of under a standalone ministry.
"The moment intelligence started to report to a minister, it was tempted to report to politics rather than policy … the constitution demands that our intelligence services stay out of politics, and must never be seen as an instrument of politics," he said.
Another former intelligence tsar, Mahlodi Sam Muofhe, who last month retired as head of the domestic branch, said the July unrest needed agile policing.
"We are at level 4 [lockdown], which does not allow interprovincial travelling. The police must make sure that these people don't get to where they are going. Level 4 says gatherings are prohibited. Why do we need intelligence law for that?" Muofhe said in an interview.
He said the abuse of funds and lack of accountability were rife, and were something he had tried to put a stop to during his tenure by, among other things, opening criminal cases against errant officials and operatives.
What pissed me off, he had the audacity to call me to tell me that I must not tell the media he was behind my firing
Shaik said he was fired from his position as head of the foreign intelligence branch after he and two colleagues warned about the threat posed by the Guptas' proximity to Zuma.
"I got fired and accepted that. And I gracefully left," he said.
Shaik said that one of the Gupta brothers, Ajay, had called him shortly after he was fired to lean on him to not state the reasons for his dismissal.
Shaik's fallout with Zuma happened after the intelligence service warned about the Guptas' capture of the state.
"What pissed me off, he had the audacity to call me - I had just lost my job - to tell me that I must not tell the media that he was behind my firing," Shaik said.
"Has this man got no dignity? Has he got no humanity? I just lost my job. I have to take care of my family and so forth. But all he was worried about is how he protects his image."
Zuma and his son Duduzane need to advise the Guptas to come to SA to testify if they did no wrong, Shaik said.
"So please come. So here's my invite to Ajay Gupta, to Atul Gupta, to all the other Guptas," he said.
"Please respect my country. Please respect this government that gave you citizenship. Please respect that citizenship. And come here and answer the questions before justice Zondo. About your wrongdoing, or your good-doing."
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