A commission of inquiry into state capture “broadly” was on the cards, but Parliament was yet to receive a formal request for it to establish a committee to address “this monster”, National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete said on Monday afternoon.

Briefing journalists ahead of tabling Parliament’s R2.2-billion budget on Tuesday, Mbete and deputy Speaker Lechesa Tsenoli said a judicial inquiry was imminent but said it had yet to receive a letter from South Africa’s biggest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, requesting an ad hoc committee probe ties between President Jacob Zuma, members of his cabinet and the Gupta family.

“I believe it is desirable to have a commission of inquiry into all these issues of state capture broadly so we can settle our minds and get on with our lives,” she said.

Mbete hinted while no official inquiry has been announced, South Africans would soon hear about it.

“For now, there is nothing, but there will be,” she said.