Transnet board to be hauled before Scopa
THE Transnet board and its top executives will make history today and tomorrow when they are subpoenaed to appear before the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa).
The state-owned entity will be the second to be summoned to appear before Scopa in almost a decade.
The failure of the executives and board to appear before the committee after receiving a summons can lead to a fine or imprisonment of up to one year.
Their woes started after they snubbed an agreed upon meeting with Scopa last December when their attempt to have it postponed was dismissed.
The meeting was meant to discuss alleged flouting of laws governing public funds, as well as expansion and deviation of contracts at Transnet, and the Hawks had been expected to make a presentation on their investigations into Transnet’s affairs.
Instead of pitching up as expected, Transnet submitted a 62-page document containing information on the contracts and forensic investigations.
This angered the MPs serving on the watchdog body, prompting them to resolve that the Transnet board and executives be summoned and be held personally liable for the costs of that cancelled meeting.
Yesterday, it emerged that the summons had been issued for the rescheduled meeting.
Scopa chairperson Themba Godi said Scopa resolved to subpoena individual members of the executive and board members to appear before Scopa to make submissions and answer questions after they failed to appear before a scheduled meeting on December 6.
Godi said their nonappearance at the December meeting had left the MPs with no choice but to subpoena them.
“We felt acceptable.
“We could no longer rely on their goodwill to come to the meeting.”
He also said the costs of the cancelled meeting have not been quantified yet.
“The determination of the costs will be in due course. We will have a meeting this week.”
Godi said the issuing of the subpoenas sent a strong message to officials that they would be hauled to meetings if that it is not they did not co-operate.
“If you don’t co-operate, we will force you to come because Parliament has a right to call anyone to appear before it.
“We are serious. We mean business and we expect everyone to co-operate.”
Godi also said Scopa would not hesitate to summon officials in the near future.
“It depends on the behaviour of the officials. If they co-operate, no problem.
“If they show a level of intransigence, we will use the iron fist.”
Transnet is the second state-owned entity to be hauled before Scopa in a period spanning over a decade under the chairmanship of Godi.
“There was a small wine development entity in the Western Cape when Lulu Xingwana was minister for agriculture.
“We had to subpoena them to come before the committee,” Godi said. Eskom’s suspended chief financial officer, Anoj Singh, will testify in Parliament.
If they co-operate, no problem. If they show a level of intransigence, we will use the iron fist