The hole gets even deeper
NEITHER the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries nor its political head, Tina Joemat-Pettersson, appear to have heard the standard advice issued to those who find themselves in a hole: stop digging.
The original hole stemmed from the department awarding an R800m fisheries protection tender involving the provision of crew and management for seven research, fisheries protection and oil-spill control vessels, to a consortium led by black empowerment company Sekunjalo Investment Holdings. The previous holder of the contract, Smit Amandla Marine, filed a court challenge alleging a number of irregularities, but Sekunjalo voluntarily withdrew from the tender before the case could be heard.
Ms Joemat-Pettersson’s response was curious to say the least: rather than extending Smit Amandla Marine’s contract temporarily to ensure the vessels would continue to be deployed while the dispute was being resolved, responsibility for monitoring SA’s fishing stocks and preventing oil spills was handed to an ill-prepared South African Navy. As a result, SA’s territorial waters went unpatrolled for several weeks and fish exports narrowly avoided being disrupted when the fish stock observer programme was suspended, putting the industry’s membership of the Marine Stewardship Council at risk.
And instead of launching an urgent investigation into the Sekunjalo tender, Ms Joemat-Pettersson went on the attack, accusing Smit Amandla Marine of trying to cling to a contract that had in any event been extended illegally. It has taken a complaint by the Democratic Alliance to the public protector — one of three against Ms JoematPettersson about her handling of the portfolio — to get the circumstances surround the awarding of the Sekunjalo contract investigated. The outcome is pending.
This was the point where it would have been wise to stop digging. But earlier in the week the department threw caution to the wind, issuing a statement claiming a forensic investigation by Ernst & Young had “confirmed multibillion-rand corruption” by Smit Amandla Marine — only to backpedal frantically when the company threatened to sue.
The way the department and ministry are carrying on, it may as well be Ms Joemat-Pettersson’s grave they are digging.