WATCH | Yakhe Kwinana's fat cake analogy resurfaces amid damning state capture report findings

Former SAA board member and SAA Technical board chair Yakhe Kwinana's fat cake analogy video has once again been thrust into the spotlight after the Zondo commission recommended she be charged with fraud and corruption.

Kwinana went viral last year for using a fat cake analogy at the commission to justify cancelling a R85m tender that was awarded to LSG Sky Chefs and handing it to a subsidiary of SAA, Air Chefs. 

During her testimony at the commission, Kwinana was quizzed about allegations of tender irregularities at SAA and her relationship with the controversial businessman Vuyo Ndzeku.

She told the commission that giving business to LSG Sky Chefs at the expense of SAA Air Chefs was not an option.  

“If my daughter sells fat cakes and someone next door is also selling fat cakes, why would I buy next door instead of supporting my daughter?

“I would not go next door to buy fat cakes and leave my child’s fat cakes here. Even if I had a challenge with them, I would say reduce the baking powder, add this and that so it could be to the customer’s satisfaction,” said Kwinana at the time. 

The first part of the Zondo commission’s report‚ released on Tuesday, recommended that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) investigate whether Kwinana and fellow board member former SAA chair Dudu Myeni were involved in corruption and fraud during their tenure at the institution. 

The commission found that the duo‚ in their respective powerful positions‚ as well as co-board members of SAA‚ ruled with an iron fist and removed anyone who stood in their way and that of the business interests they represented.

In a statement, the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica), an accountancy body that Kwinana is a member of, said that an investigation against all members implicated in the report by the commission was under way.

Saica said it had previously sought answers from Kwinana after her testimony before the commission and is yet to hear from her.

“The chartered accountancy profession is undergoing a period of profound reflection encompassing debates on how to maintain professional independence as evidenced by Saica’s recent revisions to the institute’s bylaws which include enhancements to the disciplinary process,” said Saica CEO, Freeman Nomvalo. 

“What we can all agree on, is that adherence to the highest standards of ethical conduct, professional integrity and avoidance of conflict of interest must remain the bedrock of the accountancy profession. Saica expects all its members to uphold these values in all professional circumstances. 

Nomvalo said all members who are found to have contravened Saica’s code of professional conduct will be held accountable without fear or favour, including all members mentioned in the comprehensive Zondo commission report when all three parts have been released.