Following backlash from civil society organisations and political parties calling for Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Thembi Simelane to account for her alleged involvement with Mutual Bank VBS, President Cyril Ramaphosa has requested a detailed report and briefing from her on the matter.

Early this week, media reports revealed that while serving as the mayor of Polokwane in 2016, Simelane took a "commercial loan" of R575 600 from Gundo Wealth Solutions, a company that brokered “unlawful” investments of R349-million into VBS Bank on behalf of the Polokwane municipality, amongst others.

On Tuesday, civil society organisations called on Simelane to “fully and transparently” respond to the recent VBS allegations levelled against her.

In a joint statement, Freedom Under Law, the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Judges Matter and Defend Our Democracy said perceptions of corruption and conflicts of interest caused significant harm to public confidence in governance institutions and the rule of law.

The organisations pointed out that it would be untenable for such serious allegations against a Minister in such an important portfolio to remain unanswered.

ActionSA has since approached the Public Protector to urgently investigate allegations made against Simelane, highlighting that should there be sufficient evidence of wrongdoing, the party would write to Ramaphosa, requesting the immediate removal of Simelane as Justice Minister.   

The Democratic Alliance also expressed concerns, noting it had submitted a request to the chair of the Justice Parliamentary Portfolio Committee for Simelane to appear before the portfolio to answer to the allegations.

The EFF called for Simelane to immediately resign and also urged law enforcement agencies to act swiftly in holding her accountable.

The party said Simelane's actions were not merely unethical; they were criminal.

The GOOD party said it was "completely untenable" to have Simelane embroiled in the VBS fraud and corruption scandal.

"Unfortunately, that means that Simelane cannot remain the Minister responsible for a justice system that may well have to investigate and prosecute her if the allegations sustain a prima facie case. Equally, she cannot remain at the helm if a decision not to prosecute is the ultimate outcome and is to have unimpeachable credibility," GOOD stated.