Q&A: Parliament Fire

When did the fire occur in Parliament?

The fire broke out on 2 January 2022 and burnt for at least three days. The firefighters responded within six minutes after being called and alerted by the police guarding the parliamentary precinct.

How long did the firefighters work?

The firefighters worked tirelessly for 71 hours to contain the fire. Over 300 men and women were deployed. The firefighters used 60 firefighting appliances and used two specialised aerial pieces of equipment during the three-day battle against the blaze.

Who was in the parliamentary precinct when the fire started?

The South African Police Service guards the precinct, as it is a national key point. The police were on duty on the day of the fire. They noticed the fire and called the City of Cape Town Fire Fighting and Rescue Services.

Where were the Parliamentary Protection Services officials?

The fire occurred during parliamentary staff members’ annual compulsory leave period, therefore, there were no staff members at the precinct.

How true are the allegations from NEHAWU that its members were not on duty because their weekend and public holiday shifts were cancelled as part of Parliament’s cost-cutting measures?

The decision to adjust the 24/7 deployment of parliamentary police service staff was in response to the Covid-19 lockdown workplace regulations initiated by the National State of the Disaster Declaration and informed by the Department of Labour’s workplace directive on mitigating Covid-19 spread. The parliamentary police service staff had to change the working plans to reduce the numbers. The non-work on Sundays and holidays has been an operational schedule from March 2020 to date, and this is the second December. However, a standby team roster for after-hours is communicated to all stakeholders. The standby roster extends to compulsory leave and closure period. The members of the SAPS remain on guard to secure the precincts of Parliament.

Was anyone apprehended?

The police arrested a man believed to have started the fire. The suspected arsonist has appeared in court, and the matter is receiving the necessary attention from the criminal justice system.

What caused the fire?

The cause of the fire has not yet been established and investigations are underway by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (also known as the Hawks). The Hawks are currently investigating the circumstances around the devastating incident.

Parliament experienced a previous fire in March 2021. What was the cause of that?

An electrical fault in the Old Assembly building resulted in a fire in March 2021. The sprinklers immediately activated to reduce fire damage, but caused water damage on lower floors.

What is the extent of the damage, and is there a report available on the damage?

Parliament cannot make any pronouncements on the extent of the damage at this stage. Public Works has dispatched a multidisciplinary team of engineers,

including structural, electrical, and forensic experts, to undertake their investigation. When the investigations are finalised and a report handed over, Parliament will share the findings.

Which buildings are affected by the fire?

The fire severely affected both the Old Assembly and the National Assembly buildings of Parliament. These buildings house the chambers of the National Assembly and critical offices of Parliament.

What is the significance of these buildings?

The Assembly is one of the two Houses of Parliament, which occupies an important place in the history and evolution of our constitutional democracy. In the National Assembly, over 2 000 transformative pieces of legislation have been passed since the dawn of democracy. Historically, the National Assembly building is the third of a series of phases of interlinked buildings comprising Parliament. It was built between 1983 and 1985 to accommodate the expanded needs of the apartheid Tri-cameral Parliament. Parliament appreciates that some crucial sections in the Old Assembly Building were saved. These include the NCOP Chamber and offices, the Parliament Library, the Museum including artworks and heritage objects, and the Keiskama tapestry on the ground floor of the Old Assembly Building and the Mace. Are the buildings insured, and will Parliament claim the damages? No, the buildings are not insured, as provided by the Treasury Regulations pertaining to the Management of Losses and Claims of state assets and in terms of section 78 of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) that states that “the State will bear its own damages and accident risks and be responsible for all claims and losses of state property”. Although PFMA does not bind Parliament in terms of Section 3, the buildings in the parliamentary precinct are on the National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure’s (DPWI’s) asset register. The department is subject to the PFMA and, therefore, must abide by the associated Treasury regulations. DPWI is the custodian of the precinct buildings.

Was Parliament able to digitise archives before the fire outbreak?

Yes, Parliament started the process of digitising documents and a service provider, I-kno was appointed. The project closed in 2017.

Are you able to confirm precisely how much of the digitised archive has been quality checked and is free of error?

During the running of the project, library management identified the need to implement a secondtier quality assurance process by internal library staff, to ensure the quality of the digitised content received from I-Kno. It was agreed that a 30% random sample of materials scanned would undergo this second-level quality check with an acceptable error rate of 10%. Scanned materials that were assessed with an error rate of above the 10% threshold were returned to the service provider for re-scanning. It should be noted that the library staff was stringent on the 10% error, using absolute numbers up to two decimal places (e.g., if an acceptable error was 27,96 and the actual error was 28, this was deemed unacceptable and returned to the service provider). The error rate during the operations of the project (i.e., the ‘working’ error through quality assurance) was therefore exaggerated. Various quality shortfalls/errors were correctly revealed and highlighted as part of the quality assurance process and solutions devised to address these as part of the project implementation and internal management controls. Re-scanned materials returned to Parliament were not re-checked and a final error rate was not determined. Library statistics confirmed that 95,35% of digitized materials were delivered to Parliament.

Can you confirm that the archival collections are currently inaccessible and have possibly been destroyed by the fire or water?

Currently the area destroyed by fire is inaccessible as it is still a crime scene and investigation are still taking place. Therefore, Parliament cannot at this stage confirm if the archival collections have been destroyed by fire or water.

What does the fire and safety report of the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services mean?

The report is one of the standard operating procedures of the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services. The report contains the preliminary observations of firefighters during their work. The information does not purport to provide conclusive findings and evidence regarding the cause and the circumstances surrounding the fire that gutted certain buildings at the parliamentary precinct. The responsibility to investigate the source of the fire rests with the law enforcement agencies, and their investigation is currently underway.

There is a much-talked-about 2018 Health and Safety report; where and what is this report?

The report is an internal audit commissioned by Parliament’s administration, based on its Internal Audit department’s report. It evaluated the occupational health and safety management control framework to ensure compliance with all the relevant regulations and policies and ensure that the institution’s procedures are practical and efficient as per the requirements.

What were the report›s findings and what did Parliament do to action them?

The audit identified 13 key findings relating to the design of internal controls and provided recommendations. In response to the findings, Parliament developed and signed off the governance documents and is currently implementing an action plan to close the gap identified by the audit, to ensure that Parliament is compliant. In implementing the action plan, priority was given to the risk assessments and safe work procedures for the high-risk areas, and these have been completed. The medium and low-risk assessment is in progress.

Is it safe for the Parliament community to be within the precinct?

It is safe to be in the precinct because only three of its nine buildings were adversely affected by the fire. Other buildings that house over 90% of the parliamentary staff are safe for human occupation and use. These buildings include 90 Plein, 100 Plein, Marks Building, Africa House, Good Hope Chamber and the Parliamentary Towers. The buildings are safe and are annually assessed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, the custodians of all public property and facilities. In evaluating the structures, they use independent expert agencies to assess compliance levels with Building Regulations and Safety prescripts and the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

What provisions have been made by Parliament to its staff members in response to the fire?

The Accounting Officer has urged all staff to continue working from home until further notice, except for those essential workers required by their respective supervisors/ managers to come to the precinct to deal with the aftermath of the fire disaster and preparations for Parliament’s flagship programmes, including the State of the Nation Address and budget speech.

Will the business of Parliament continue?

The business of Parliament is currently continuing. The Joint Programming Committee of both Houses has met and agreed on Parliament’s programme. Despite being on constituency period, some committees like the PC on Mineral Resources began public hearings on the Gas Amendment Bill. Furthermore, the Presiding Officers have officially announced a venue for hosting the State of the Nation Address. Parliament is resilient and forging ahead with its planned programme despite the devastating fire.