global south african news wrap 31 may 2012
TRANSCRIPT
31 May 2012 1
Global South African Weekly News Wrap Up 31 May
2012
Contents Africa Day all over the world ...................................................................................... 3 SA welcomes Nigeria’s switch to back Dlamini-Zuma ............................................. 4 'Root out dependence'.................................................................................................. 5 ‘Progress is good’: The billions of rands that the government has pumped into
the massive infrastructure has turned South Africa into an industrial site while
at the same time ensuring that the state improves the social and economic
conditions of its people, said President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday. ..................... 6 Murray’s The Spear to be classified by end of the week .......................................... 8
Enough us enough, Blade tells whites ........................................................................ 9
ANC will take to the streets — Mantashe ................................................................ 10 Mokaba region wants Motlanthe: report ................................................................ 12 Uproar as MPS lock horns over Zuma .................................................................... 13
Blade: destroy 'Spear' painting ................................................................................ 15 Young people fancy Motlanthe ................................................................................. 16
NUM’s proposals for mining sector echo ANC’s research paper ......................... 17 NUM retains Zuma ally in top position ................................................................... 19 SA government sees no reason to condemn Syria over massacre ......................... 20
Spear march sets ANC on new path ......................................................................... 21 More in the kitty for MeerKAT and SKA ............................................................... 24
The president who became a joke............................................................................. 25 Malema doesn't support boycott .............................................................................. 27
SKA is about ground-breaking science, not egos .................................................... 28 ANC policies will increase poverty, says Mbeki ...................................................... 29
Calls to boycott City Press over Spear ..................................................................... 30 Child grant helps break cycle of poverty — study ................................................. 32
Top lawyer cries foul as Zuma appoints judges ...................................................... 33 'I'm no racist: Artist Brett Murray, in his affidavit, explains why he painted 'The
Spear' .......................................................................................................................... 35 Mdluli 'a security risk'............................................................................................... 37 Mandela book hits shelves – again ........................................................................... 38
Lekota blasts ‘fascist’ ANC: report.......................................................................... 39 NUM wants delinquent directors blacklisted .......................................................... 40
DA calls on Zuma to decline new term .................................................................... 41 Molefe warns of risks to Transnet’s investment plan ............................................. 43 SAA pleads poverty to Parliament ........................................................................... 44 Sisulu Berates Mps Over Poor Laws, ‘Lack Of Scrutiny’ ..................................... 45 Mine union ‘turf war’ hammers SA’s GDP ............................................................ 47
ANC boycott call 'backfires' ..................................................................................... 48 Mdluli feels squeeze ................................................................................................... 49 Gauteng slams Zuma allies ....................................................................................... 51
31 May 2012 2
Impatience and politics lead to SKA site split ......................................................... 52
Suffer the children ..................................................................................................... 54 ANC ponders new role for 'Cele the liar' ................................................................ 56 Bid to shut Manyi's mouth ........................................................................................ 59
How we nailed Cele: Reporters were illegally bugged as they pursued the story 60 Planned protest keeps Spear in spotlight ................................................................. 62 ANC interference prompts Pikoli sacking ............................................................... 64
31 May 2012 3
25 May 2012
The Times
Page 7
RoshanNebhrajani
Africa Day all over the world
People around the world are celebrating African unity today, the 49th annual Africa
Day.
From concerts to business forums, events will be held around the world to discuss and
strengthen the global African bond.
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said yesterday: "Each year, Africa Day provides
an opportunity to acknowledge the achievements of the peoples and governments of
Africa."
On this day 49 years ago, the Organisation of African Unity, the precursor of the
African Union, was established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by 32 representatives of
African countries.
South Africa became the 53rd member on May 23 1994.
This year, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation is hosting the
first Global African Diaspora summit, which will be attended by 64 heads of state,
including President Jacob Zuma, in Sandton, Johannesburg.
"Africa Day acknowledges the progress that we, as Africans, have made while
reflecting upon the common challenges we face in a global environment," department
spokesman Nelson Kgwete said.
No African celebration would be complete without its fair share of music and dance.
A number of musicians from Africa will perform in South Africa in honour of Africa
Day.
Dance, culture, art, theatre and poetry programmes will be held at the Sanaa Africa
Festival in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, at the weekend.
Artists such as RingoMadlingozi, Dorothy Masuku and Cameroonian Della Tamin
will perform on Sunday.
Malian singer Salif Keita will appear at the new Soweto Theatre, in Jabulani, on
Sunday.
Nigerian singer Femi Kuti will speak at the Open Forum Conference in Cape Town.
The Johannesburg Arts and Culture Department is hosting a three-day Africa film
festival at Sandton City.
31 May 2012 4
Large-scale Africa events will be held in Ireland, England and the US
25 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Sam Mkokeli
SA welcomes Nigeria’s switch to back Dlamini-Zuma
South African diplomats have welcomed Nigeria‘s backing of Home Affairs Minister
NkosazanaDlamini-Zuma ‘s bid to become the chairwoman of the African Union
(AU) Commission.
The announcement this week by the Nigerian government that it was backing Dr
Dlamini-Zuma has buoyed lobbyists, who have targeted the West African bloc as an
important region if she is to win in July‘s election.
A diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said last night Egypt had also
pledged its support for her.
Both these regional superpowers — Nigeria for West Africa and Egypt for North
Africa — are expected to help swing their neighbouring countries to vote for Dr
Dlamini-Zuma.
Lindiwe Zulu, a presidential adviser on foreign policy, said yesterday Nigeria‘s
backing would make lobbying much easier.
"It‘s a good boost, the more countries we get, the better for us. To have a country like
Nigeria backing us gives our campaign a big boost."
Dr Dlamini-Zuma has the backing of the other 14 Southern African Development
Community (SADC) members, whose foreign affairs ministers were tasked with
lobbying countries outside Southern African to vote for her.
A decision was made at SADC level that Dr Dlamini-Zuma should be supported as a
regional candidate, instead of a representative of SA, officials say. This was meant to
counter negative attitudes towards SA, seen as a strong power that could throw its
weight around and dominate other countries on the continent, a diplomat said last
night.
Ministers from countries such as Zimbabwe and Angola were expected to lobby their
counterparts from other blocs during a summit in Sandton this weekend. Dr Dlamini-
Zuma has also been backed by a business lobby in Ghana.
However, Dr Dlamini-Zuma‘s campaign suffered a setback two weeks ago when
Kenya voiced its support for the incumbent, Jean Ping of Gabon.
Mr Ping and Dr Dlamini-Zuma squared up for the post in January, but the election
was deadlocked when neither of them could get the required three quarters majority.
31 May 2012 5
But the South African government has not given up on persuading Kenya, officials
say.
The SADC campaign is premised mainly on the argument that the post should be
rotated among the regional blocs.
Southern African and North African countries have yet to have their citizens occupy
the position.
If Dr Dlamini-Zuma wins, it could pave the way for North Africa to push its candidate
after the five-year term.
Egypt has its sights on the term after Dr Dlamini-Zuma, hence its support for SA‘s
rotation principle based bid, said an official.
25 May 2012
The Times
Page 9
Canaan Mdletshe
'Root out dependence'
Africa, particularly, the Southern African Development Community, will only
develop if its transport infrastructure improves.
This was said in Durban during the 14th annual African Renaissance conference
attended by government ministers from several African countries, including
Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Namibia, Mozambique and
Swaziland.
"The development of transport infrastructure is equivalent to economic and social
development, including the free movement of people and goods. Critical to Africa's
development is promoting connectivity," said Transport Minister and African
Renaissance chairman S'bu Ndebele.
He said the time for individual African countries to act in silos was over.
"Cooperation and partnerships are what we would like to market as founding
principles for our transport infrastructure programmes going forward.
"In line with this thought, the people of the continent have embarked on major
regional road infrastructure corridors, which are currently under way throughout the
continent," he said.
The region boasts nearly 20 regional road corridors.
"The existence of the transport corridors, which are at various stages of the planning,
development and management processes, is a clear indication that Africa is now a
31 May 2012 6
united entity, poised to improve its global status through cooperation and
partnerships," said Ndebele.
KwaZulu-Natal Premier ZweliMkhize said the time had arrived for Africans to create
a better future for future generations.
"With good governance, the African continent could become a land of prosperity.
What has crippled the continent historically - apart from colonialism - has been the
culture of dependence."
"For too long we, as a continent, the cradle of humankind, have been entrapped in a
mindset of dependence, allowing others to dictate terms and to shape our destination.
The culture of dependence should be replaced by that of independence," he said.
"We have minerals and natural resources in abundance and what we need is to harness
the right kinds of skills to process the resources in a uniquely African way," Mkhize
said.
"Experience has shown that world markets are ready to accept our distinctive artistry.
Only when we embrace one another as brothers and sisters, working together and
combining our technical skills, will we add value to the primary products."
He said Africa should focus on improving the provision of water, sanitation, roads,
electrification and other infrastructure to be part of growing the economy to enable
the creation of jobs and eradicate poverty.
"Africa needs to focus on investment in gross fixed formation that creates concrete
jobs as opposed to the bonds and financial market where the wealth leaves the country
with the purchaser having never set foot on the soil where the transaction occurs.
"Revival and strengthening of agriculture must be intensified to ensure that starvation
no longer claims so many lives," he said.
31 May 2012
The New Age
Siyabonga Mkhwanazi
‘Progress is good’: The billions of rands that the government has pumped into the massive infrastructure has turned South Africa into an industrial site while at the same time ensuring that the state improves the social and economic conditions of its people, said President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday.
Speaking in Parliament, Zuma said that the government continues to clamp down on
crime and corruption.
31 May 2012 7
Tabling his budget vote, Zuma said following the announcement he made in his State
of the Nation Address in February, work had started to implement infrastructure
projects in various provinces.
The government has invested more than R845bn in infrastructure development in the
next three years.
Since the announcement, the government has launched four strategic infrastructure
projects, he said. The first project, which is driven by Public Works Minister
ThulasNxesi, was launched in April and it involves three provinces in integrating rail,
road, water and energy.
Another project involves 12 urban centres and focuses on urban planning and an
efficient public transport system.
The Saldanha and Northern Cape Development Corridor, which was launched two
weeks ago, will incorporate mining, industrial and energy projects, said Zuma.
The government was focusing on improving the delivery of basic services in 23 poor
district municipalities.
He also told MPs that government provides social grants to more than 10 million
children to fight poverty, which was impressive for a developing nation.
The government has made considerable progress in the fight against HIV/Aids, said
Zuma, adding that the mother to child transmission has declined saving 30000 lives of
babies a year.
The battle against crime has led to the probe against 1529 officials involved in
corruption within the criminal justice system over the last three years.
As a result of the investigations 192 officials were charged for corruption resulting in
86 being convicted. A further 296 officials were charged by their departments.
Zuma has called on government departments to settle billions of rands they owe to
municipalities for services.
The call by Zuma comes a week after the Department of Cooperative Governance and
Traditional Affairs told parliament that departments owed local councils R3.5bn. The
debt was sitting at R3.9bn in September last year, but following intervention by the
task team, that was set up by the government, the debt was brought down to R3.5bn in
December 2011.
Officials warned that if the debt was not settled it would cripple the functioning of
municipalities.
Zuma also announced that steps would be undertaken to speed up disciplinary cases
against officials.
31 May 2012 8
In terms of the law cases need to be concluded within 60 days, but this rarely happens.
It is all about good governance and serving the people, said Zuma.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Karl Gernetzky
Murray’s The Spear to be classified by end of the week
The Film and Publications Board rules that Brett Murray‘s controversial painting, The
Spear, will receive a classification by Friday
The Film and Publications Board (FPB) ruled yesterday that Brett Murray‘s
controversial painting, The Spear, will receive a classification by Friday, rejecting
arguments by applicants, the Goodman Gallery and the City Press newspaper, to have
the matter dismissed outright.
Yesterday‘s hearing in Pretoria centred on the jurisdiction of the board in placing an
age-related warning on the painting depicting President Jacob Zuma with exposed
genitals. Both applicants contended that classification would mean the board
overstepped its mandate.
Following representations from the applicants, who repeatedly requested the board to
clarify the extent of its jurisdiction, FPB chief operating officer Mmapula Fisha said
the board had decided to proceed with the process of classification. This was due to
the board‘s "duty" to SA‘s children, and despite the concerns of the applicants over
issues of jurisdiction, the board could not "fold its hands over the issue".
Ms Fisha chaired the hearing following FPB CEO Yoliswa Makhasi‘s recusal last
Wednesday which followed City Press editor Ferial Haffajee‘s complaint that she was
biased. Advocate Steve Budlender, for City Press, argued that the matter should never
have been brought before the classification committee, as bona fide newspapers were
regulated by the press ombudsman and guided by the South African Press Code.
Following the board‘s decision to proceed with the classification, Ms Fisha said the
FPB board had "always been aware" that the complaint related to the City Press did
not fall within its jurisdiction, yet the board had "an obligation" to hear the City Press
representation.
In this regard, the classification of the content would continue due to the FPB‘s duty
to protect children.
Adv Matthew Welz, for the Goodman Gallery, had argued that following the defacing
of the painting it "no longer exists".
31 May 2012 9
As such it fell outside the jurisdiction of the FPB, which had obligations to classify
content that was being published, he said.
But Ms Fisha said the gallery continued to display the painting on its website "as we
speak".
Ms Fisha then rejected AdvWelz‘s argument that the formal complaint which served
as the basis of the hearing had made no mention of the gallery‘s website, saying its
display there "cannot be looked at in isolation" from the exhibition.
AdvWelz also expressed concern that the issue of the painting on the gallery‘s
website "had not been on the table" until after the board‘s decision to proceed.
He then reiterated that the committee should refrain from placing an age-related
warning on the painting, saying it was in the public interest.
AdvWelz referred to legal precedent where rulings were not made if judged to have
no effect, and could therefore undermine the authority of the court, saying that if the
committee "wants to make a show of being ineffective, it will classify this painting".
The applicants reserved the right to appeal against the ruling, which Ms Fisha said
should happen "within two days".
AdvWelz requested that the board submit in writing its reasons why it had jurisdiction
in the matter, along with the classification committee‘s decision.
30 May 2012
Sowetan
Hlengiwe Nhlabathi
Enough us enough, Blade tells whites
ANC alliance partners take to the streets
COSATU president Sdumo Dlamini has lashed out at liberals saying they were using
"spooks" like former president FW de Klerk to undermine the ANC leadership.
Speaking outside the Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg yesterday, Dlamini said: "It's
clear; there is an agenda at play to undermine the ruling party with spooks like FW de
Klerk."
He said spooks should remain in their graves where they were buried.
"If they are in their graves, they must remain in their graves and not be ghosts that
walk in daylight," he said to loud cheers from thousands of people who had marched
to the gallery to voice their disapproval of Brett Murray's painting.
De Klerk offended many recently when he defended the apartheid system during an
interview with foreign broadcaster CNN.
31 May 2012 10
Yesterday De Klerk's spokesman Dave Steward said: "First of all, Mr Dlamini is from
an organisation that holds principles that are completely irreconcilable with the
constitution. All South Africans in constitutional democracy, including former
president FW de Klerk, have a right to comment on developments."
The march was led by ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, flanked by Dlamini,
Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi, Higher Education Minister and also SACP
leader Blade Nzimande, Deputy Health Minister Gwen Ramokgopa and ANC NEC
member Tony Yengeni.
Dlamini and Vavi ditched their central executive committee meeting, which was
under way at Cosatu House, to be at the march. Vavi read out the memorandum that
was delivered at the gallery.
Mantashe said their mission was complete after Murray and the gallery owners
apologised in a letter for the hurt and pain caused, and verbally agreed to remove the
website version of the painting.
The original painting that had been booked for display until next month was destroyed
last week when two men - businessman Barend la Grange and Polokwane taxi driver
Louis Mabokela - defaced it.
Nzimande said the painting should not be allowed to leave the country.
"It must not leave here. It must be destroyed once and for all," he said.
It is understood the German collector who bought the painting for R136,000 wants it
as it is.
Nzimande also condemned what he said were "liberals who are disrespecting us. To
whites, we are saying enough is enough."
Thousands of people who were bused by the ANC from provinces including
Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Northern Cape walked from nearby Zoo Lake to the
gallery.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Natasha Marrian
ANC will take to the streets — Mantashe
African National Congress secretary-general Gwede Mantashe says what the party
cannot win in the courts, it will win in the streets
What the African National Congress (ANC) could not win in the courts, it would win
in the streets, party secretary-general Gwede Mantashe said yesterday, declaring the
31 May 2012 11
march to the Goodman Gallery over the controversial painting, The Spear, a "mission
accomplished".
Against the backdrop of the ANC‘s loss in court over the right to sing a struggle song
and an unresolved court interdict against the painting, his comments could be viewed
as a populist approach to tackling the country‘s problems.
The now-defaced painting — depicting President Jacob Zuma with his penis exposed
— was removed from the City Press website and from the walls of the gallery and
will also be removed from its website. That followed a week of protests, talks and
compromise.
The artwork whipped up the emotions of South Africans across colour lines, with
some condemning it as insulting and vile, and others dismissing criticism of it as
intolerant and undemocratic.
"They have not been interdicted by the courts, they have been interdicted by you," Mr
Mantashe told thousands of ANC members who marched in defence of Mr Zuma.
"That is your power."
The thousand-strong march kicked off at the Zoo Lake, with poster-carrying
protesters bused in from as far afield as Mpumalanga.
It snaked its way through the suburb of Parkview, up Jan Smuts Avenue, which was
closed to traffic for its duration, and halted outside the gallery in Rosebank.
Protesters sang and danced as they approached. Some took the opportunity to
campaign for Mr Zuma ahead of his battle for a second term at the head of the ANC.
"Naked or not, Zuma for second term: Mpumalanga," read one placard.
The Goodman Gallery, in its response to the ANC memorandum, said it never
intended causing hurt or harm to the dignity of anyone.
The gallery had removed the painting from its walls and "looked forward to continue
engaging with the ANC". It gave Mr Mantashe an assurance that it would also remove
the painting from its website.
The leadership of the ANC and its alliance partners, the Congress of South African
Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party (SACP), addressed
the crowd from the back of a truck.
Mr Mantashe said there was a "very strong liberal offensive" under way against the
movement, an "offensive on people excluded from the political system for many
years". He said the ANC had the right to defend itself, the country and African values
and culture, referring to critics who accused the party of bullying the gallery into
submission. He said "papering over the cracks of racial tension" was not going to help
the process of unifying SA.
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande, the general secretary of the SACP,
called for the complete destruction of the painting.
31 May 2012 12
"Don‘t sell it, it must remain in this country and be destroyed … if it is allowed to go
to Germany … they are making our president the second Sara Baartman," he said.
Baartman was a Khoisan woman taken to Europe in the 1800s and displayed because
of her physical features.
The painting by artist Brett Murray has already been sold to a German collector for
R136000.
The rank and file of the ANC had taken the matter to heart, with workers forgoing a
day‘s wage to protest. Gauteng businessman and ANC member John Ndlovu said he
empathised with Mr Zuma.
"Zuma‘s got children, I just imagined what the children were thinking. I had to put
myself in his shoes, I‘ve got kids," he said.
28 May 2012 The New Age Sapa
Mokaba region wants Motlanthe: report The ANC'S Peter Mokaba region in Limpopo has pronounced its support for Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, according to a report on Monday. According to The Citizen newspaper Limpopo joined Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal in defying a ruling party order not to enter the succession debate ahead of the ANC's elective conference in December. The Capricorn district municipality's executive mayor, Lawrence Mapoulo, told the newspaper: "We'll support a leadership that will give the thumbs up to economic freedom in our lifetime... and redistribution of land without compensation. "By the looks of things, Kgalema is the only ANC bigwig who understands that concept. It is only Motlanthe who can take us to the promised land of Mangaung and beyond." He was speaking after the Peter Mokaba region's elective conference held in Polokwane at the weekend. Mapoulo is an ally of Limpopo premier Cassel Mathale, The Citizen reported.
31 May 2012 13
31 May 2012
Cape Times
Page 1
Gaye Davis
Uproar as MPS lock horns over Zuma President Jacob Zuma‘s leadership came under sustained opposition attack during a
rowdy session of Parliament yesterday when he was accused of failing in his duty to
uphold and defend the constitution and urged to drop his bid for re-election by his
party.
The assault came after Zuma spoke in support of the Presidency‘s more than R1
billion budget when he announced a national ―social cohesion and nation-building
summit in Kliptown, Soweto in July.
It would be a platform ―to discuss how we can build a new nation from the ashes of
racism and hatred‖, said Zuma, whose dignity has been at the centre of the storm that
has raged over the artwork, The Spear.
The ANC‘s handling of the controversy provided a ready weapon for Cope leader
MosiuoaLekota, who infuriated ANC MPs by attacking Zuma over a ―shocking
failure‖ to uphold the constitution by defending the rights of artist Brett Murray – who
depicted him with exposed genitals – gallery owner Lisa Essers and City Press editor
Ferial Haffajee, who published the picture.
Near-pandemonium broke out when Lekota compared the ANC‘s protest march over
the painting to tactics used in Hitler‘s Germany.
Zuma had not uttered a word of disapproval over his party leaders and cabinet
members resorting to ―fasciststyle‖ means of threatening people who were exercising
their rights and waiting for the court to hand down judgment.
Lekota – accused of ―hate speech‖ and treating the sitting ―like a rally‖ – had to beg
Deputy Speaker NomaindiaMfeketo for protection: ―I can‘t be humiliated in front of
you and you don‘t do anything.‖
Coming to Zuma‘s defence, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande asked for a
ruling on whether such a serious statement about the president could be made – and
later, his SACP colleague, Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin, accused Lekota
of channelling the ―underbelly of the DA‖.
Cronin made it clear the episode was not about the legalities or aesthetics. It had
―caused great emotional hurt and opened up unhealed wounds‖ – demonstrated by
advocate Gcina Malindi‘s courtroom breakdown, Cronin said.
All, but especially white South Africans, needed to understand this, he added.
Earlier in the debate, an unsmiling Zuma sat as DA parliamentary leader Lindiwe
Mazibuko linked his ―failure of leadership‖ to economic hardship among citizens
31 May 2012 14
whose faith in him had ―been shaken‖ due to lack of progress on jobs, economic
growth and fighting corruption. ―South Africa is facing a crisis of leadership…
―The national government is teetering under the weight of mismanagement and poor
decision-making,‖ Mazibuko claimed.
She challenged Zuma to release the report of the judicial inquiry into the arms deal ―at
the same time that he receives it‖ and asked why SAPS crime intelligence boss
Richard Mdluli was suspended only after an NGO went to court.
―The president has time and again failed the constitutional test of accountability that
our entire system of government is built upon,‖ Mazibuko said.
―The president should be using the full powers of his executive office to shine the
bright light of forensic investigation into suspected criminal activity…‖
Instead of using his power to investigate ―a titanic power struggle‖ engulfing the
security services, Zuma continued ―to preside over a sinister ‗state within the state…
―His problem is that he must constantly reshuffle the security services like a deck of
cards in order to stay on top,‖ Mazibuko said.
A true leader led his party, while Zuma ―simply follows his‖.
―He is forced to bow before unelected Cosatu and others.
―He is unable to drive policy that runs counter to the disparate factions that brought
him to power and he will never be able to stamp his authority on his government
because these factions do not share a common purpose.‖
Zuma had promised jobs, but ―the only job we seem to hear about is his: Will he keep
it? Will he lose it? Who might challenge him?‖ Mazibuko said, urging him to ―look
deep within his heart‖ and not stand for re-election at the ANC‘s elective conference
in Mangaung in December.
―This is what the people of South Africa want, and what many people in his own
party want,‖ Mazibuko said.
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa said there were signs Zuma‘s office was ―losing its
dignity and authority‖.
Citing the e-tolling debacle, Holomisa said: ―There is a clear conflict of interest when
the party that governs is first in the line for government tenders.‖
He suggested his party might approach the courts on the matter.
Zuma is expected to reply to the debate today.
31 May 2012 15
30 May 2012
The Times
Page 5
AmukelaniChauke, AndileNdlovu and RoshanNebhrajani
Blade: destroy 'Spear' painting
The final destination of President Jacob Zuma's controversial The Spear portrait is in
question following a call by the SA Communist Party for it to remain in South Africa
so that it can be destroyed.
Yesterday, Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande said the painting by
Brett Murray should be destroyed.
But yesterday, lawyers representing the Goodman Gallery reportedly shunned his call
and said the defaced painting, which portrays Zuma with his genitals exposed, will be
shipped to the German who bought it for R136000.
Speaking to thousands of supporters in front of the gallery yesterday, Nzimande
called on the gallery not to sell the painting.
"We are saying, this insulting drawing of the president, we are saying to the Goodman
Gallery, 'Don't sell it, it must not leave this country, it must remain here, it must be
destroyed once and for good'.
"If we allow this drawing to go to this German person who has bought it, we are
actually making our president the second Sarah Baartman.
"So this thing must not be sold, it is not worth anything, it belongs to the museum of
shame in this country," he said.
Nzimande was accompanied by ANC heavyweights, including national executive
committee members NgoakoRamatlhodi, Tony Yengeni and secretary-general
GwedeMantashe, ANC Gauteng secretary David Makhura, and Cosatu leaders
SdumoDlamini and ZwelinzimaVavi.
Yesterday, thousands of ANC supporters marched to the gallery in protest at the
displaying of the painting, which they said violated Zuma's dignity.
After two weeks of public exchanges and an emotional court hearing, City Press
editor Ferial Haffajee issued a public apology to Zuma's family, and yesterday
removed a picture of the portrait from the newspaper's website.
On Monday night, the gallery apologised for displaying the painting after a meeting
with Arts and Culture Minister Paul Mashatile.
Shortly after submitting a memorandum of demands, Mantashe told ANC supporters
that the gallery's representative had apologised, and had promised to remove the
painting from the website "on the spot".
31 May 2012 16
But the gallery's legal representatives said: "The statements made by the ANC
spokesman during the march on the Goodman Gallery do not reflect the proposals
made by the Goodman Gallery to the ANC in confidential negotiations which did not
result in a settlement."
Mantashe later called off the boycott of City Press.
ANC supporters, many of whom were bused in from other provinces, gathered at Zoo
Lake, Johannesburg, from the early hours of yesterday, with some displaying placards
that read "Naked or not, Zuma for second term".
There was a heavy police presence prior to the march.
Zuma's son, Duduzane, 28, refused to speak to the media before he was whisked away
in a black Mercedes Benz.
Emily Tollo, from Brits, in North West, was adamant that Brett Murray did not
deserve forgiveness - even if he "repented".
"We're supporting Zuma because he's like our father, and the country's father. The
portrait was inappropriate and [Murray] must get on a ship and go back to Europe, or
wherever he's from," she said.
Before the march started, a small crowd of ANC supporters burned posters that had
been pasted outside the gallery featuring a rhino painted in a style similar to that of
The Spear but with the animal's horn replaced by a penis.
MmapulaFisha, the Film and Publication Board's COO, said the board's classification
committee would end its deliberations on the classification of The Spear.
27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 13 Monica Laganparsad
Young people fancy Motlanthe Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is a more popular choice for president among young South Africans than incumbent Jacob Zuma. A survey by Pondering Panda on social media platform Mxit revealed that Motlanthe had the most support overall. He came closest to losing this position to former ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema among those aged between 18 and 24. Overall, DA leader Helen Zille was the third choice and Zuma came in last. Motlanthe earned 28.5% of the votes, followed by Malema with 19.8% and Zille with 18.7%. Zuma only managed to get 15.3%.
31 May 2012 17
More than 3500 South Africans under the age of 35 took part in the survey, which gave them the choice of four candidates. Butch Rice from Pondering Panda said he found it startling that Motlanthe was more popular than Zuma, saying it was an indication of how young South Africans viewed the president's leadership. ''Also, Malema should not be overlooked. In our work we found that he had consistent support in the 15 to 20 age group." Rice said support for Malema was so strong that he could potentially run his own political party with a ''very strong support base". ''There are 6.5million users on Mxit in South Africa compared to just 4.5million on Facebook. What we do is engage users to find out what they think about the important issues of the day - and they want their opinion to be heard," he said. CEO Shirley Wakefield said Zuma was the least popular choice by race and age, whereas Motlanthe was the most popular among black youth, with 33.5% of the votes. ''This should be of particular concern to [Zuma] as the youth vote will be very important in the next election," said Wakefield. 28 May 2012 Business Day Page 1 Carol Paton
NUM’s proposals for mining sector echo ANC’s research paper National Union of Mineworkers says wholesale nationalisation will amount to a ‘technical bail-out of mining investors’ In a likely precursor to what will happen at the African National Congress (ANC) policy conference next month, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) adopted at its national congress last week many of the proposals for state intervention in the mining sector contained in the ANC’s research paper on the topic. Wholesale nationalisation was not strategic and would result in "nationalisation of mining debt and a technical bail-out of mining investors", the union said. Like the ANC research paper, the NUM argues the government should achieve better leverage of SA’s mineral resources for development through, among others: a resource rent tax, which could be partly used to fund a sovereign wealth fund; a state-owned mining company; and the declaration of certain minerals as strategic. Strategic minerals would have to be sold into the local market at "developmental prices", usually export-parity prices; and export tariffs would be imposed on strategic minerals.
31 May 2012 18
The NUM also calls for a Presidential Mineral Sector Council (similar to the Presidential Infrastructure Co-ordinating Committee) to co-ordinate the work of different government departments that have a role in the minerals sector. This is a variation on the ANC paper’s suggestion of a super-ministry to play the role. Discussions at next month’s ANC policy conference are being closely watched by investors and follow nearly two years of uncertainty since nationalisation was put on the agenda by the ANC Youth League. The ANC’s research paper, published in February, will form the basis of discussions on the mining sector. While it opposes nationalisation, many of its proposals will have far-reaching implications for companies doing business in the sector. Other developments at the NUM congress — such as the re-election of general secretary Frans Baleni — can also seen as important indicators for likely events at the ANC’s national conference in December. Mr Baleni was viewed as a supporter of President Jacob Zuma and the status quo, while his challenger, Oupa Komane, was identified with those who would like to see Mr Zuma replaced. While Mr Baleni’s victory can be seen as translating into general satisfaction with Mr Zuma at the head of the ANC, the union stopped short of formally endorsing him for another term. Although a draft resolution to the congress had proposed the NUM should lobby other Cosatu unions to support Mr Zuma’s re-election in December, this was toned down and in the end did not explicitly state this support. Instead it was agreed Mr Zuma and his leadership team should be supported for the rest of their term. Thereafter, the general principle of continuity and the need to evaluate the skills and capacity of leadership should be taken into account when considering leadership choices. "We said we support the leadership collective that emerged at Polokwane," Mr Baleni said. "We also said we have assessed their performance against the resolutions made there and realised there is progress in some areas and disappointment in others." The cautiously phrased debate around the resolution left many delegates confused. Many believed the congress had in the end supported Mr Zuma for a second term and several news reports were carried to this effect. The NUM leadership election was the most highly contested in the union’s 30-years. Mr Baleni, who will serve his third term as general secretary, won about 60% of the vote after unprecedented scenes in which opposing groups rallied on the congress floor. All national office bearers were re-elected, including NUM president Senzeni Zokwana.
31 May 2012 19
Mr Baleni said yesterday the NUM’s vision was to build a unified and growing union. "You can only lead when there is unity. Those who have lost must now be led by those who have won, and those who have won should never purge those who have lost." 28 May 2012 Business Day Page 4 Natasha Marrian
NUM retains Zuma ally in top position National Union of Mineworkers general secretary Frans Baleni has retained his post after a hotly contested struggle with his deputy, Oupa Komane National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) general secretary Frans Baleni retained his post after a hotly contested struggle with his deputy, Oupa Komane, at the NUM’s electoral conference at the weekend. Mr Baleni’s re-election bodes well for President Jacob Zuma ’s bid for a second term at the helm of the African National Congress (ANC), as it ensures the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) is in sympathetic hands. The union was the first Cosatu affiliate to discuss the question of the ANC’s leadership. The NUM "adopted" a resolution during a plenary session last week to support the current ANC leadership at the party conference in Mangaung in December, but presented a watered-down version to the public, with Mr Baleni saying the resolution was "altered". The resolution was moved by only one region, and was not seconded or opposed. "The resolution was altered, where we said we support the leadership elected in Polokwane as per Cosatu’s stance," he said yesterday. The opinion on the ANC’s leadership emerging from the NUM conference was ambiguous. A written resolution of the national executive committee called simultaneously for continuity in Mangaung, and for change. The ANC chastised the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) this year, when it publicly expressed its desire for the party’s top brass to be replaced at Mangaung. The party has called repeatedly for the succession debate to be postponed until nominations open in October. Cosatu’s official position is that it would support the leadership elected in Polokwane, including Mr Zuma, until the federation decided otherwise. Numsa has called for change in the ANC’s national executive committee. But the NUM under Mr Baleni is likely to support the status quo,
31 May 2012 20
although the leadership battle has left the union divided. The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union — another large Cosatu affiliate — is understood to back Mr Zuma, while the South African Democratic Teachers Union is divided. It was a tight contest between Mr Baleni and Mr Komane, with the incumbent winning by a small margin. NUM president Senzeni Zokwana retained his post, as did his deputy, Piet Matosa. Mr Komane was replaced by Northern Cape secretary Tshimane Montoedi. The union leadership had complained about "dirty campaigning" ahead of the election and during the four-day congress — including the eliciting of aid from employers for certain campaigns. They also complained about phone-tapping, and e-mails and faxes being monitored. The NUM also resolved on sorting out a longstanding fight with Numsa over membership. The leadership of the NUM is to request assistance from Cosatu House to have its members from Eskom "returned" to it. Numsa was also "encroaching" on the NUM’s territory in mining and construction. During the plenary session, workers were told about regional NUM leaders who, shortly after being ousted from their posts, were found recruiting members for Numsa. Numsa is believed to be the second-largest Cosatu affiliate and is more militant in its approach to both union and ANC politics.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 1
Khulekani Magubane
SA government sees no reason to condemn Syria over massacre
Department of International Relations and Co-operation spokesman Clayson Monyela
says the massacre of 108 people is no reason to change the relationship between SA
and Syria
ALTHOUGH 10 countries yesterday expelled Syrian diplomats in outrage at the
massacre of 108 people, almost half of them children, the Department of International
Relations and Co-operation could not see any reason to step up pressure against the
Arab state.
SA had also been out of step with western nations on the Libyan transition last year
— voting at the United Nations (UN) for a no-fly zone and then protesting
vehemently when Muammar Gaddafi‘s forces were attacked.
31 May 2012 21
The US, France, Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, the Netherlands
and Bulgaria have given Syria‘s envoys notice to leave their capitals in a move that
underlined Syrian President Bashar al-Assad‘s diplomatic isolation.
But Department of International Relations and Co-operation spokesman Clayson
Monyela said yesterday the massacre was no reason to change the relationship
between SA and Syria. "We are complacent in our relationship with Syria and we
have condemned the violence that has taken place there."
The department had encouraged "civilised discussion" with the Arab republic. He said
he did not see why the actions of western nations should influence SA.
"We have put a statement on the department‘s website expressing our concern about
the amount of people who have died and how the violence concerns us," he said.
The statement was published on April 14 in support of UN joint special envoy Kofi
Annan and called for a "balanced resolution" to Syria‘s problems.
There has been no condemnation from SA of the killings in the town of Houla. The
UN said entire families were killed in their homes on Friday, some by army tanks and
others probably by pro-Assad militia.
Mr Annan said yesterday that Syria, suffering from persistent killings and abuses, was
at a "tipping point" and he had appealed to Mr al-Assad to act immediately to halt the
violence. He said in his talks in Damascus with Mr al-Assad he had "conveyed in
frank terms the grave concern of the international community about the violence in
Syria, including the recent shocking events in Houla."
He said Mr al-Assad had also condemned the killings, denied any role and blamed
Islamist "terrorists".
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said yesterday Mr al-Assad was "the
murderer of his people" and called on him to relinquish power.
US state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland called the Houla attack "the most
unambiguous indictment to date" of Damascus‘s refusal to implement UN resolutions.
"We hold the Syrian government responsible for this slaughter of innocent lives," she
said.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 1
Sam Mkokeli
Spear march sets ANC on new path
The African National Congress‘s change in tactics has succeeded, allowing its
secretary-general, Gwede Mantashe, to gloat ‗mission accomplished!‘
31 May 2012 22
THE African National Congress (ANC) protest against a painting of President Jacob
Zuma is a catalyst for its new and populist posture, as it seeks to mute the power of
the courts, where its government has been losing cases.
The party‘s change in tactics succeeded yesterday, allowing its secretary-general,
Gwede Mantashe, to gloat "mission accomplished!" Brett Murray‘s painting, titled
The Spear, of Mr Zuma with his genitals exposed, was in effect banned.
It was defaced last week, by people Mr Mantashe said deserved an award. As the
party celebrated, its members showing the nation the power they wield, the likely
consequence is that institutions such as the courts will be short-circuited by the power
of the people in the streets.
The North Gauteng High Court has not yet ruled on whether the painting infringes
any law or the constitution, but the ANC‘s march has removed it from the public
gaze. The ANC‘s legal and constitutional affairs head, Ngoako Ramatlhodi, says the
march is the "beginning of the second transition", where the "constitution was given
life in the streets".
The "second transition" is the ANC‘s attempt to push up by a notch its drive to
consolidate power and transform society. Early drafts of the strategy and tactics
document to be discussed at next month‘s policy conference raised eyebrows, with
calls for unconstitutional methods to transfer land ownership to black South Africans
and to transform the judiciary.
The party‘s march was successful, but it could also be seen as an admission that it
lacks the ability to transform the country, despite its electoral majority, which is just
below the two-thirds mark. This new tactic could backfire if used by communities
angry about poor services. The ruling party can hardly complain about residents
marching on it, if it encourages members to take to the streets.
Mr Ramatlhodi says the ANC has committed a "fatal error" since coming to power,
by relying on the state to transform society. "We don‘t control the state," he says,
referring to stumbling blocks like the judiciary. He is among leaders pushing the ANC
to "bring out the masses whenever the need arises".
"Gone are the days where you have an ANC that relies exclusively on its presence in
government," Mr Ramatlhodi says.
Yesterday‘s march blamed everybody but the ANC for the slow transformation of SA.
It led the eyes of the "masses" away from ANC failures, branding liberals, ungrateful
whites and the oppositionist media as the enemy. South African Communist Party
general secretary Blade Nzimande went further, calling Mr Murray and those who did
not back the ANC protests as "imidlwembe" (sellouts) — a powerful insult during the
struggle against apartheid.
The march provided a huge relief for Mr Zuma, whose presidency has become a
matter of putting out fires, and survival.
31 May 2012 23
Now that the Goodman Gallery and City Press have acceded to the ANC‘s demands,
it is expected Mr Zuma will withdraw his court application. This will leave
unresolved the pertinent question of competing rights: freedom of expression versus
the right to dignity. The masses and their leaders, in their wisdom, decided on the
streets yesterday which is more important. Who will dare disagree with them ?
31 May 2012 24
28 May 2012 The Times Page 7 Denise Williams
More in the kitty for MeerKAT and SKA Even before confirmation that South Africa had won the majority vote to host the world's largest radio telescope, the Square Kilometre Array, over R1-billion had already been allocated and some of it spent. SKA South Africa's Justin Jonas said yesterday that R1.4-billion had been set aside for the first phase of the project. This has largely been allocated to the completion of South Africa's own radio telescope, the MeerKAT, due to be finished by 2016. The MeerKAT will account for 10% of the work done to complete the SKA in 2024. "The MeerKAT is what we call very, very nearly the SKA. It's very close to what SKA will be. We only have to build three-quarters of SKA," said Jonas. He said Australia had spent about A$220-million (R1.8-billion) on its own national telescope initiative. On Friday, Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor announced that South Africa had won two-thirds of the bid, along with eight African counterparts. The international SKA organisation split the construction of the SKA in favour of South Africa, with two receivers awarded to South Africa and one to Australia. Pandor lauded the win as a victory for South Africa, saying she was "ecstatic" as it was a victory for the scientists, engineers and for the continent. However, because of the split victory, South Africa might have to fork out unexpected money to fund the project. This was because of the higher electricity prices in Australia. In the meantime, South Africa would get stuck in to the "nuts and bolts" of moving towards the completion of phase one.
31 May 2012 25
24 May 2012
Mail and Guardian
KhayaDlanga
The president who became a joke
Mr President, take the advice Nelson Mandela gave to Bill Clinton and focus on the
job at hand - not the distractions, writes Khaya Dlanga
We‘ve got to try in whatever little way we can to understand why Jacob Zuma reacts
the way he does even though we are no psychologists.
No South African president in modern times has had his private life exposed by the
papers as much as Zuma.
From every turn, he has been judged on how he lives his life and little on how he does
his job. The papers are forever littered with one scandal or another.
One can almost understand and sympathise with his reaction to the painting. He feels
affronted on all levels and all the time. We talk about his sexuality, the number of
children he has and the number of wives. Having unprotected sex with an HIV
positive woman who was not his wife even though he had more than one wife at the
time; and then fathering a child out of wedlock with a friend‘s daughter. Every single
one of these has been covered by the news on numerous occasions.
It is in this context that the painting by Brett Murray famously known as The Spear
came to be. Some say that a great wrong has been perpetrated upon the person of the
president, while others say that it is a reflection of facts about how he has lived his
life.
He is a man with children, wives and a president. His own children have to see how
he is portrayed: his fly open before the world. He is conflicted between being a father
and being a public figure and being made a laughing stock. He is a president, not a
laughing stock. Laughter is good.
Yet some humour can be a weapon that can wound and kill the soul. Yet what humour
can do is bring out the unpleasant truth. As Andre Comte-Sponville once put it, ―What
it rules out is self-deception and self-satisfaction in the conduct of our lives and our
relationships with others.‖
One by one, article by article, scandal by scandal, a picture of Zuma was being
painted on the minds of the people as a man who can‘t be taken too seriously, who
just likes to have a good time. The indignation he feels goes beyond just the painting.
He wants to be taken seriously as president. It also explains how he has taken Zapiro
to court for his cartoons. He wants to show us that he is a serious man. He also wants
to be treated with dignity.
Perhaps he sees his presidency as something that is under siege from the press and
that the courts are not on his side. His frustrations are understandable. The press
seems to celebrate his failures and sweep his successes under a dirty rug.
31 May 2012 26
In the 1990s, then American president Bill Clinton was followed by a sexual scandal
involving Monica Lewinsky. The story was covered by every paper and news outlet
24/7. Even Chris Rock made a rather crude joke inferring that then first lady Hillary
Clinton hadn‘t done what she was supposed to do, which is how Bill strayed. The joke
was of course very shocking. Yet Chris Rock was not sued nor threatened for making
such a joke.
Clinton became a butt of jokes. Later, he would say that the way he survived the
scandal was listening to Nelson Mandela‘s advice, who told him to focus on the work
he was elected to do, not on the scandal.
Today, president Bill Clinton is remembered as one of America‘s really good modern
presidents because he focused on what needed to be done for the American people.
He presided over one of America‘s most prosperous times, he even left the country in
surplus. He focused on the work at hand, not personal affronts.
Earlier this year, a painting of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper by Margaret
Sutherland shows him reclining on a chair, completely naked. A dog rests at his feet.
The prime minister‘s office simply responded, ―On the Sutherland painting: we‘re not
impressed. Everyone knows the PM is a cat person.‖ They responded with humour.
And please nobody start with the ―unAfrican‖ argument because it is has no leg to
stand on.
There are some who want to reduce the painting to race and call it racist. Of course it
is not. It is just distasteful. Despite its distasteful nature, I will defend the artist‘s right
to paint it and the gallery‘s right to display it. Personal feelings on the matter aside.
The great thing about the country though is that the president, like anybody else, has
the right to approach the courts about the painting.
The race card argument says that the president has been reduced to nothing but a
sexual being, which is how white people see black men. Sometimes I dread the race
card because it‘s often brought up situations where people are too lazy to think of a
proper argument. They gravitate towards what is easy and fail to apply their minds in
order to win a harder argument based on real factors for they know that no one will
try to debate the race card. There is nothing racist about that painting.
What of the atrocious 2010 painting by Ayanda Mabulu which portrays Desmond
Tutu naked, with the Pope‘s hand resting on his thigh? The same painting exhibits
Jacob Zuma‘s penis as well. Is it racist too? There has been no outrage about it, of
course. The only thing that I find outrageous about that painting is that it is so
outrageously bad, it shouldn‘t even be called art.
In the US, the presidential communications department is trained on how to dominate
the message of the day, how not to let a story run away. They learn to control the
message quickly. A story runs away when you don‘t own it. If you don‘t own it, you
can‘t control it. The president became a victim instead of owning the story.
He has been painted as a victim. People don‘t believe that a powerful man like him is
a victim or can be. Just because ordinary people on the street are angered by the
31 May 2012 27
painting doesn‘t mean that they think he is a victim. In their minds, he is too powerful
to be one. When he was running for the presidency of the ANC, it was easy to see
how he could be a victim.
Personally, I don‘t want my president to become a joke, but I do want my president to
take a joke. I don‘t want my president to be treated as a man without dignity, but I do
want him to be dignified when he is treated without dignity. I don‘t want my president
to be overly sensitive, but I do want him to navigate around difficult issues with
sensitivity and wisdom.
Mr President, take the advice Nelson Mandela gave to Bill Clinton. Focus on the job
at hand and ignore the distraction and create a legacy so great we can‘t ignore.
27 My 2012 The New Age Sapa
Malema doesn't support boycott Former ANC Youth League president Julius Malema spoke out against plans to boycott City Press in an open letter published in the weekly on Sunday. "Of all the freedoms contained in the Bill of Rights, the right we should defend with our lives is the right to hold different opinions on how we view society and how we think certain matters should be handled," he said. SACP general secretary Blade Nzimande and ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe have called for a boycott of City Press after the paper refused to take down a portrait of President Jacob Zuma with his genitals exposed. "Banning newspapers simply because we disagree with them, and boycotting them on the basis of believing that our conception of truth is absolute, poses a real threat to our democracy," he said. Malema said that City Press had run articles vilifying him for more than six months. The paper had still not admitted to the "many mistakes" he said they had committed. "So the views I am expressing here are not about (saving) City Press' face or rewarding them for anything positive they have done for me," he said.
28 May 2012 Business Day Page 4 Sarah Wild
31 May 2012 28
SKA is about ground-breaking science, not egos Having both Australia and South Africa on board will enable the SKA to perform the best science possible. That should be the focus, not our egos While many South Africans were jubilant at the news that SA would be splitting the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope with Australia, others chose to see it as an unfair compromise and "a kick in the teeth for Africa on Africa Day". But the reality is that a split was always the most likely outcome. It was just a question of which country got what percentage. A number of issues have been conflated — African pride, the need to prove ourselves against Australia, and the money. But the heart of the SKA is about doing ground-breaking science in the best possible place with the best possible people. The main argument cited for why SA should have won the SKA in its entirety is that the country was recommended by the site selection advisory committee. But, as stated by SKA SA director Bernie Fanaroff: "It was always said that the technical recommendation would be one of the elements considered, but it was never the case that it would automatically determine the outcome." This is because there are a number of other elements to look at, not least the large investment by both countries. SA has spent about R2bn on its SKA precursor telescope, MeerKAT, and Australia’s precursor, ASKAP, has a A$100m price tag. That is a very large investment, given the close scrutiny of science budgets in the present economic climate. "(The split) brings the precursor telescopes into the project," SKA Organisation director John Womersley said after the site decision on Friday. "The decision was science-motivated and strengthens the project in the long run … Everyone is in favour of it: SA, Australia and the SKA Organisation." The SKA is an interferometer, a large collection of antennas acting as one very big telescope, which will observe a range of frequencies. The split will fall along frequency lines. SA has been awarded the lion’s share of the SKA and, because of frequencies it has been allocated, its eight partner countries will also have satellite stations. Two SKA phases have been planned: SKA1 and SKA2. SKA1 will incorporate existing infrastructure in Australia and SA, including the precursor telescopes. This phase comprises a mid-frequency, low frequency and survey array. SA will host the mid-frequency, while the other two arrays will be in Australia. SKA2 comprises a low-frequency, mid-frequency and the aperture array, with SA hosting the mid-frequency and aperture arrays. This means that SA will host the dish array, with dishes spiralling up through Africa. Being awarded 70% of the SKA is, observes Dr Fanaroff, "a huge victory" for Africa. "It recognises the fact that Africa was recommended and
31 May 2012 29
that 70% of the SKA will be built in Africa. It shows great confidence in Africa," he says. Bear in mind that SA was the dark horse in the race for the SKA. The country was initially an observing country and only decided to bid to host the telescope in the mid-2000s, whereas Australia was a driving force from the start and was involved in the conceptualisation of the mammoth radio telescope. Australia has been one of the world leaders in radio astronomy since the discipline began to develop in the post-World War Two period. In fact, in the 1960s it was decided that SA should not develop its radio astronomy capacity because of the high cost and because Australia had such an impressive head start. In the past decade, SA has played catch-up and the recommendation by the site advisory committee shows that we are now a global radio astronomy player, but we should not become so drunk on competitive fervour that we forget Australia has skills and expertise. In the 21st century, scientific research is about collaboration, and the SKA — whatever guise it took — was always going to be a collaborative effort by several countries. The telescope will be better for having Australian scientists and engineers included in the project, and opens the doors for a better exchange of skills and engagement. "The more countries that participate, the better," Dr Fanaroff says. Having both Australia and SA on board will enable the SKA to perform the best science possible. That should be the focus, not our egos. FinanceMedia ► LISTEN ► THINK ► TALK
25 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Sam Mkokeli
ANC policies will increase poverty, says Mbeki
Moeletsi Mbeki says the ANC is driving economic policies that will lead to more
poverty.
The African National Congress (ANC) was driving economic policies that would lead
to more poverty, prominent political economist Moeletsi Mbeki said last night.
Mr Mbeki was speaking at a seminar at Wits University on the ruling party‘s policy
documents, to be discussed at a conference next month.
He said that instead of a productive class, the ANC was creating an administrative
class, made up mainly of the black elite, which was part of a household-consumption-
dependent economy.
31 May 2012 30
On the other hand, the large size of welfare payments — made to 15,3million out of a
population of about 50-million — bought off the poor, but worsened their poverty.
Last year Mr Mbeki, who has become a strong critic of the ANC, caused an uproar in
the party when he said the ANC would face a "Tunisia Day" civil revolt around 2020.
"We are a country that is deindustralising, yet the welfare state is growing," he said
yesterday.
The increasing welfare expenditure was an "effort to buy off the vote of the black
poor".
The country needed new politics, with labour and business firmly at the centre of
political decision making, he said. "As long as they are out, there will never be
economic growth that is meaningful … these two groups control productive assets."
A class of indigenous entrepreneurs was also needed, he said.
Mr Mbeki said public servants were drawing huge salaries, which meant that
resources were not going to a productive sector of the economy. "The ANC
government is about consumption, not production. Production is secondary to them."
Even the infrastructure drive meant to boost economic growth and create jobs was
doomed, he said, because there were no domestic savings to pay for it.
25 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Ernest Mabuza and Natasha Marrian
Calls to boycott City Press over Spear
The row over a satirical painting of President Jacob Zuma deepened yesterday, with
the African National Congress (ANC) calling for an indefinite boycott of City Press
newspaper until it removed the "insulting portrait" from its website.
Mr Zuma, his children and the ANC yesterday agreed to the indefinite postponement
of a hearing where they were seeking the removal of Brett Murray‘s painting, The
Spear, depicting Mr Zuma with his genitals exposed, from the Goodman Gallery and
the paper‘s website.
The ANC also called for support of its protest action set for Tuesday at the
Johannesburg gallery.
"City Press has therefore become a paragon of immorality, abuse and perpetrator of
injustice and slander," the party said yesterday.
"Their refusal to remove this portrait from their website and their controlled social
media is a clear indication that this newspaper does not belong to our shared
democratic dispensation and values."
31 May 2012 31
The South African National Editors Forum said it was "alarmed" at the call to boycott
City Press.
It said this was "tantamount to intimidation and abuse of power" and was "
unbecoming of a party that functions in an open democratic stage and especially one
which leads the national government".
South African Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande also called for a
boycott of City Press, beginning this Sunday.
City Press editor-in-chief Ferial Haffajee said yesterday: "As an editor one tries one‘s
best to be first with the news and to maximise one‘s newspaper‘s impact.
"No one wants a boycott."
During a hearing at the South Gauteng High Court yesterday on the application that
the painting be removed, the parties decided to postpone the matter indefinitely to
allow for a reconstitution of the bench to continue the hearing.
The judges had spent the morning questioning whether Mr Zuma‘s request could be
enforceable if the court granted the order.
Although the painting was defaced by two men at the gallery on Tuesday, there were
a number of other sources where the image of the portrait could be viewed.
Judges NeelsClaassen, FayeezaKathree-Setiloane and Lucy Mailula were concerned
that, given that the image was all over the internet, it would be difficult for the court
to monitor a ban if it granted Mr Zuma‘s application.
"What if the portrait is downloaded from other websites? Is that a violation of the
interdict? " JudgeClaassen asked.
Mr Zuma‘s counsel, GcinaMalindi SC, asked the judges to give him time to consider
the court‘s interrogation of the remedy that Mr Zuma sought.
He said the portrait infringed on Mr Zuma‘s right to dignity.
Mr Malindi said the fact that the image was publicised was no bar to the declaration
of unlawfulness that Mr Zuma sought. T he constitutional right to dignity was not in
competition with any right, he said.
"No one can limit it. If we succeed with that, then all evidence before the court is
irrelevant," he said.
He broke down in tears while arguing the case for Mr Zuma. The court ordered that a
TV clip which showed Mr Malindi crying should not be televised further.
31 May 2012 32
Mr Malindi said after the court adjourned that he had suddenly been overcome by
emotion when he broke down. " There is a history to it as a former activist," he said
after the case had been postponed.
Hundreds of people had gathered outside the court.
After the hearing, ANC secretary-general GwedeMantashe addressed the crowd
outside the court and asked them to march on the Goodman Gallery on Tuesday.
DuduzileZuma thanked the crowd for supporting his father.
UmkhontoweSizwe national chairman Kenny Mapatswe said the ANC‘s military
wing would come to court "again and again to defend dignity".
25 May 2012
Business Day
Page 5
BekezelaPhakathi
Child grant helps break cycle of poverty — study
Early enrolment in the child support grant programme greatly improves the recipient‘s
health and educational capabilities, and reduces the risk of the recipient being trapped
in the cycle of poverty, a study released yesterday has found.
Nearly 16-million South Africans receive social grants and the number is expected to
rise to 16,8-million in 2014-15. In his budget speech early this year, Finance Minister
PravinGordhan announced that the child support grant, which reaches 10-million
children, would increase from R270 to R280 a month.
Early this year, however, Social Development Minister BathabileDlamini said there
were still about 2-million needy children who were not receiving social grants.
The study was commissioned and funded by the Department of Social Development,
United Nations children‘s fund Unicef, and the South African Social Security Agency
(Sassa).
It found that receipt of a child grant generated "a whole range of positive impacts".
Carried out by the Economic Policy Research Institute in partnership with the
International Food Policy Research Institute, the study found that the child grant
directly reduced poverty and vulnerability. It found that "adolescents" on the grant
were less likely to engage in "risky behaviour, which in the context of high HIV
prevalence generates a particularly protective impact".
According to the study, there is ample "evidence of the grant‘s impact in significantly
reducing six main risky behaviours" — sexual activity, becoming pregnant, alcohol
use, drug use, criminal activity and gang membership.
31 May 2012 33
It was also found that receipt of the child support grant varied over different age
groups. Take-up rates peaked for children aged seven to 10, while that for infants was
relatively low.
But the social grant system has been bedevilled by a number of problems in the past,
not least of which is corruption.
Last month, Ms Dlamini told Parliament that public servants had illegally received
more than R40bn in fraudulent social grant claims between August 2009 and
December 2011. Earlier this year, Ms Dlamini said Sassa would reregister more than
15-million social grant beneficiaries in a bid to rid the system of corruption and
ensure that social grants were paid to the right people.
Speaking at the launch of the study in Gugulethu yesterday, Ms Dlamini said the
findings of the study were crucial as they proved that the African National Congress-
led government was "committed to improving the wellbeing of our children".
However, Democratic Alliance social development spokesman Mike Waters said the
fact that 10-million children were dependent on social grants was an "indictment" of
the ANC government.
"If they were taking care of people, these children would not be dependent on social
grants. Their parents would be employed and able to take care of their families," Mr
Waters said.
He further said social grants were a short-term measure that would alleviate but not
eradicate poverty. The government needed to create more job opportunities.
25 May 2012
The Times
Page 6
Nivashni Nair
Top lawyer cries foul as Zuma appoints judges
President Jacob Zuma yesterday appointed new judges to the bench, but several
vacancies have still been left unfilled.
New judges were appointed to the bench of the Supreme Court of Appeal in
Bloemfontein as well as of high courts in Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Gauteng.
The Judicial Service Commission failed to recommend candidates for the position of
deputy judge president of KwaZulu-Natal and for three positions at high courts in
Gauteng because it had been found that the nominated candidates were not suitable
for the positions.
These vacancies will be advertised in October, according to the commission's
spokesman, CP Fourie.
31 May 2012 34
In March, the commission was unable to shortlist candidates for a position in the
Constitutional Court because it received an "insufficient number of appropriate
nominations".
Four candidates - Supreme Court of Appeal justices Robert Nugent, Mandisa Maya
and Lebotsang Bosielo and North Gauteng High Court judge Raymond Zondo - have
since been shortlisted and will be interviewed next month.
Acting on the JSC's recommendation, Zuma appointed Xola Mlungisi Petse and
Ronnie Pillay as justices of the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Advocate WimTrengove SC said, however, that he was disappointed that Eastern
Cape judge Clive Plasket, an expert in administrative law with 58 reported judgments,
had not been appointed to the Supreme Court of Appeal bench.
Many lawyers felt Plasket was overlooked in favour of Judge Pillay.
Trengove said Plasket was just one of many suitable candidates who had not been
considered.
He said the commission's call for competent and appropriately qualified candidates to
apply for positions would go unheard until it gave a credible answer as to why
suitable candidates were overlooked in the past.
"I don't think the problem will be solved until the commission gives a credible answer
on the failure to recommend other suitable candidates," he said.
Trengove said he did not believe the JSC was desperate for good judges.
He said "the quality and the image of the bench suffers as a result" of its actions.
Fourie said the commission always appointed suitable candidates to help create a
strong judiciary.
He said unfilled positions did not affect the workings of the courts and that most often
acting appointments were made to fill the gaps.
Former public protector advocate Selby Baqwa, whose office oversaw one aspect of
the arms deal probe when former president Thabo Mbeki was in office, has been
appointed as a judge in the Pretoria High Court.
31 May 2012 35
25 May 2012
The Times
Page 1
Artist Brett Murray
'I'm no racist: Artist Brett Murray, in his affidavit, explains why he painted 'The Spear'
"At the outset, I would like to say that I am a proud South African and a former
supporter of the ANC. I am not a racist. I do not produce art with an intention to hurt,
humiliate or insult, and that includes the painting that has caused this controversy.
I emphatically deny that any such intention motivated the painting or exhibiting of
The Spear. This will be borne out by my explanation as to the background and context
of my work. The Spear has a dual purpose: it is a work of protest or resistance art, and
it is a satirical piece.
I would like to explain my history to give a context to my work.
I was born in South Africa and raised, in the 1970s and 1980s, in a society that was
perverted, controlled by corrupt, morally bereft politicians who treated South Africa -
my country - as a personal fiefdom of their racist elite. To preserve their position of
illegitimate power, tactics of intimidation, coercion, violence, manipulation, and
misuse of intelligence and police forces, were the norm.
Censorship prevailed and freedom of expression was severely curtailed. White men,
such as me, were conscripted into the army to take up arms against fellow South
Africans, to fight a war we did not believe in against enemies that we considered to be
friends.
I [therefore], in order to avoid conscription, studied for 10 years, and thereafter went
into self-imposed exile in London until the ANC was unbanned and I returned to
South Africa.
While I was studying, I was involved in anti-apartheid activities in the trade union
movement, church groups, youth groups, and the End Conscription Campaign. As an
artist, I produced and designed banners, posters, stickers, protest worker diaries and
the like in support of the struggle.
It was growing up in this apartheid society that caused me, from an early age, to think
about issues of power, race, politics, patriarchy, oppression and the manipulation of
the media.
Indeed, these themes have by and large prevailed through my work as an artist over
many years.
When I studied for my master's in fine arts, I reflected satirically on the apartheid
regime. The works consisted of satirical figures describing policemen with dynamite
in their ears, pigs as soldiers.
31 May 2012 36
Like many other South Africans, I embraced the dawn of a new South Africa. I was
teaching art at Stellenbosch University in 1994 when South Africa's first democratic
election was held and, as a supporter of the ANC, I proudly cast my ballot on April 27
1994.
That day signified hope, freedom, an end to tyranny and the dawn of a new era for
me, my countrymen and the whole world. South Africa moved from being a pariah
state to being the proudest nation in the world.
As our democracy developed, cracks began to show in the way that the ruling elite
was implementing the ideals of the Freedom Charter and our constitution.
From my perspective as an artist I felt a sense of betrayal, where heroes of the
struggle now appeared to be corrupt, power-hungry and greedy, or where ideals that
many had died or made sacrifices for were abandoned on the altar of expedience.
Over the past few years one ongoing narrative in our society has been the story of the
first applicant [President Jacob Zuma]. For instance, in a judgment implicating the
first applicant, a court found that the first applicant was closely linked to his former
financial adviser, SchabirShaik, who was found guilty of corruption.
Another controversial feature of the first applicant's public life was the failure by the
prosecuting authorities to proceed with corruption charges against him,
notwithstanding the apparent existence of evidence to sustain such charges.
Details of the first applicant's sex life have been well documented in the public
domain. Notwithstanding the fact that he has four wives, he has engaged in extra-
marital sex on at least two occasions.
For me, satire is critical entertainment. While I might be attacking and ridiculing
specific targets, what I am actually doing is articulating my vision of an ideal world in
which I want to live . In this instance, that preferred ideal in the South African context
is the Freedom Charter.
What satire can do in a political context is that it can be seen as a political
contestation as it opens political debate.
The resulting debate that has surrounded this work is in itself evidence that this does
happen and that artwork can provoke these debates, however unsettling they might be.
There is therefore no reason for artists to be censored, however uncomfortable this
might be for individuals and for society at large.
For me, The Spear has a far broader meaning than some of the public discourse on its
meaning, including the first applicant's interpretation. It is a metaphor for power,
greed and patriarchy."
31 May 2012
The Times
31 May 2012 37
Page 6
Graeme Hosken
Mdluli 'a security risk'
In an apparent move to silence embattled intelligence police chief Lieutenant-General
Richard Mdluli once and for all, his security clearance has allegedly been allowed to
lapse, with those expected to approve its renewal stonewalling him.
Mdluli, who is fighting for his career, was suspended for a second time on Saturday.
He is facing five separate investigations, with the fifth being launched by the public
protector on Monday.
The public protector's investigation follows calls by Housing Minister Tokyo Sexwale
to investigate allegations by Mdluli that he [Sexwale] and other ANC leaders were
part of plot to oust President Jacob Zuma.
Mdluli is also the subject of an inquest over his alleged role in the murder of his
former lover's husband. It was information from the inquest that led to his latest
suspension.
The security lapse, which is believed to have occurred more than a year ago, is
alleged to pose a national security threat to the country, with Mdluli privy to
information he was not entitled to.
This information includes, among others, knowledge on security threats and
movements of the president and deputy president.
The alleged security lapse and that of former crime intelligence finance chief
Lieutenant-General Solly Lazarus was revealed yesterday in a parliamentary reply by
Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa to DA police spokesman Dianne Kohler Barnard's
question.
"Mthethwa must explain why and how the president and senior politicians were
placed at risk by allowing Mdluli to absorb the VIP Protection Services," Kohler
Barnard demanded.
"It is unfathomable that a man, without passing the necessary security tests, is allowed
to oversee and control police officers guarding the president, ministers and premiers
when he's not allowed to go anywhere near them."
Police ministry spokesman Zweli Mnisi declined to comment on Mdluli's security
clearance.
"It is in a confidential file. A security clearance certificate, which a member is
required to apply for, is valid for between five and 10 years.
31 May 2012 38
"The renewal process takes longer but as the minister indicated, General Mdluli has
applied for renewal," he said.
Asked how long it would take to renew it, Mnisi said it varied.
"Once an application is made, it is not in the hands of the applicant, but in the hands
of those who approve it. It is similar when one applies for an ID. For some it could
take three months, for others it could take a year," he said.
Pretoria University criminologist Professor Christiaan Bezuidenhout said as soon as a
person's security clearance lapsed or was revoked, they were immediately deemed a
security risk.
"Being the crime intelligence head means the person has top security clearance,
giving them carte blanche on all information," said Bezuidenhout.
"What is happening is a worldwide phenomenon. It is a way of putting a lid on
someone who knows absolutely everything about a country - from government
ministers' indiscretions, the handling of service delivery protests, crime, rhino
poaching to having intimate knowledge of the 2008 xenophobic attacks."
Bezuidenhout said Mdluli and the controversy surrounding him were causing huge
problems.
"Where there is a political issue [and] where an individual poses a risk, they will be
ousted in whatever way possible," he said.
He said the strategy was used against people "not playing the game" or those suddenly
deemed to be unfit for their position.
"It is clear Mdluli's alleged actions are bringing individuals, government and the
ruling party into disrepute," he said.
31 May 2012
The Times
Page 3
AndileNdlovu
Mandela book hits shelves – again
It appears one can never have enough of former president Nelson Mandela, not even
Charlene Smith, who had written a biography on him over a dozen years ago.
After two more new film projects were unveiled at the Cannes Film Festival last
week, this South African-born author, who resides in the US, is re-releasing Mandela:
In Celebration of a Great Life on tomorrow in both countries.
31 May 2012 39
After releasing the 172-page (and 128 pictures) authorised biography on the 93-year-
old, Smith said on her website that she would be giving Americans a talk in Maryland
on Madiba's relationship with their country.
The talk would be held on July 15 - a mere three days before Madiba celebrates his
94th birthday in his homestead of Qunu in the Eastern Cape.
The book, which will be published via Random House Struik, covers Mandela's early
years, student days, incarceration, years as a statesman and life since retirement,
according to a synopsis. It will also come with interviews with "friends and fellow
leaders".
Some of the pictures include one of the mass funeral for the 69 victims of the 1960
Sharpeville massacre, one of Madiba burning his ID book in protest of the Sharpeville
shootings, and a powerful one of children in Phola Park, near Thokoza on the East
Rand, throwing rocks beside a fire during pre-election violence in 1994.
In the chapter titled "A Clash of Values", Smith writes: "Courts failed to operate
properly, and criminal activity, thus obscured, thrived. This would create the deepest
wounds within the future democratic state.
"Faction fighting, a centuries-old scourge that saw African clans pit themselves
against each other, often for decades-old grievances, was allowed to flourish and
develop new forms under the haze of violence."
During a speech to the ANC conference in December 1997, drafted by his then deputy
Thabo Mbeki, Mandela attacked the press and international donors for failing to
deliver on their promises.
He also criticised white people for failing to reform.
The speech did not sit too well with many listeners, but in the book Smith quotes one
party insider who said: "Mandela was not happy with the speech, although he agreed
with some of its content. But he also knew that if Mbeki delivered the speech, it
would cause the country grave damage, but because of Mandela's stature the speech
could be carried off."
30 May 2012
The New Age
Sandile Hlangani
Lekota blasts ‘fascist’ ANC: report
Cope leader Mosiuoa Lekota has accused the ANC of opening the door to
totalitarianism by using ―fascist tactics‖ in its response to the controversial painting,
according to a report on Wednesday.
31 May 2012 40
For the ANC to call on City Press and the Goodman Gallery to remove images of the
painting from their websites it had expunged section 16 (1) and (2) from the
constitution, IOL News reported.
Lekota told the site that freedom of artistic creativity which is articulated in 16(1) (c)
became a casualty.
―Specifically the ‗freedom of the press and other media‘ provided for in 16(1) (a) and
‗freedom of artistic creativity‘ articulated in 16(1) (c) became casualties,‖ Lekota was
quoted as saying.
31 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Paul Vecchiatto
NUM wants delinquent directors blacklisted
Aurora Empowerment Systems‘ handling of the Grootvlei and Orkney gold mines has
prompted the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) to call for legislative changes
to allow the blacklisting of company directors.
The politically connected directors of the nascent mining company — which included
President Jacob Zuma ‘s nephew, KhulubuseZuma, and former president Nelson
Mandela‘s grandson, Zondwa Mandela — did not hear the references to them in
Parliament yesterday as they failed to appear before the mineral resources committee.
The committee was conducting a hearing on what was being done by Aurora, the
liquidators, the Department of Labour and the union to alleviate the plight of
thousands of unpaid workers following mismanagement at the two gold mines.
The joint provisional liquidators also did not appear before the committee either.
Committee chairman Fred Gona said: "The failure of key players to arrive means we
have to schedule another meeting."
NUM representative Madoda Sambatha said a mineworker who did not pay his
accounts for three months was automatically blacklisted. "But a company director
who doesn‘t pay his mineworkers has to be taken to court by the government or
someone else to pay up."
Mr Sambatha said workers at liquidated companies were among the last to be paid
after shareholders and creditors.
"Workers are treated like machinery when the liquidators look at a company that has
failed," he said.
Mr Sambatha said it was unfair that the directors were celebrating another deal while
the workers of the failed company still had to be paid, referring to KhulubuseZuma‘s
31 May 2012 41
winning an oil-field concession in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2010,
when the deterioration at the mine had already set in.
Mr Gona said Mr Sambatha should point out sections of the Companies Act that
should be changed so the mineral resources committee members could liaise with
their trade and industry counterparts.
Parliament‘s labour committee chairman, Elleck Nchabaleng, said the rights of
workers during a liquidation were part of the overhaul the Basic Conditions of
Employment Act now under way.
Mr Sambatha expressed his union‘s "frustration" in getting information from the
liquidators and the new buyers, Chinese Africa Precious Minerals.
31 May 2012
Business Day
Page 3
Wyndham Hartley
DA calls on Zuma to decline new term
Democratic Alliance parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko earns the ire of the
African National Congress benches after she details a long list of leadership failures
by President Jacob Zuma
A furious debate on the budget of the Presidency yesterday saw the opposition call for
President Jacob Zuma to decline a second term of office in the interests of the country
while the African National Congress (ANC) mounted a vigorous defence of the
president.
Introducing his budget vote to the National Assembly, Mr Zuma claimed a long series
of successes for his administration while opposition leaders threw charges of failure
across the floor. It was perhaps the most concentrated attack on a sitting president in
the democratic era.
Democratic Alliance (DA) parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko earned the ire of
the ANC benches when she detailed a long list of leadership failures by Mr Zuma.
She said: "In the interest of the country, I ask the president this: would he consider
putting aside self-interest by not making himself available to serve a second term at
the ANC elective conference later this year?
"This is what the people of SA want, and what many people in his party want. There
are deep divisions in SA and in the ANC house today, and the president cannot
overcome them. The greatest test of leadership is to know when to give it up and pass
the torch to a new generation."
If Mr Zuma did not stand for another term, he could use the final two years of his
tenure to repair the damage done in the first three.
31 May 2012 42
Congress of the People leader MosiuoaLekota charged that Mr Zuma had betrayed his
oath of office to protect the constitution.
Referring to the furore around The Spear painting he said "the president, as the main
defender of the constitution, failed Brett Murray, Ferial Haffajee, LizaEssers, who
were exercising their constitutionally entrenched right. He thus also failed the nation,
the controversy surrounding The Spear did not justify a dereliction of the president‘s
solemn duty to the Constitution."
Mr Zuma remained silent while "the secretary-general of the ruling party, its official
spokesman and the Minister of Higher Education resorted to extrajudicial measures to
whip up emotions, manifestly trample on the constitutionally guaranteed rights, create
fear among citizens, call for the boycott of a newspaper and divide the nation. This, I
submit, was incitement to disregard constitutionalism in our democracy and to
undermine the judiciary."
United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa told Mr Zuma there were signs
his office was losing its dignity and authority.
"It is puzzling how your party outside government and its tripartite alliance partners
were allowed to undermine the Cabinet‘s decision on the e-tolling fiasco. Cabinet
took a decision to proceed with the e-tolling system, which received the support of
most political parties during the finance minister‘s budget vote.
"However, after leaks to the media linking the ANC‘s and Cosatu‘s investment arms
to the e-tolling system, and in an apparent move by tripartite alliance partners to
conceal their dodgy dealings, the Cabinet‘s decision on e-tolling was reversed by a
few leaders who met outside government," Mr Holomisa said.
This situation was made worse when Mr Zuma and Deputy President Kgalema
Motlanthe contradicted each other on the role of the ANC‘s Chancellor House in
getting access to government tenders.
"For instance, early this year, Mr Motlanthe said in this house it was wrong for the
investment arms of the alliance partners to access government tenders. However, in
the same house last week you said exactly the opposite, despite the glaring conflict of
interest," Mr Holomisa said.
"Given the fact that you, Mr President, see nothing wrong with this form of
institutionalised corruption, (my party) is left with no choice but to seek legal opinion
… and establish whether it cannot approach courts for redress as we did when we
took the floor-crossing legislation to the Constitutional Court. There is a clear conflict
of interest when the party that governs is first in the line for government tenders."
Mr Zuma will reply today.
31 May 2012 43
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 2
Carol Paton
Molefe warns of risks to Transnet’s investment plan
Transnet CEO Brian Molefe yesterday warned of several risks that could derail the
group‘s R300bn investment programme, which forms the core of the government‘s
infrastructure development plan.
Mr Molefe told Parliament‘s portfolio committee on economic development of some
threats to Transnet‘s ambitious plans: regulatory risks, such as the threat from the
government that its rail assets will be split; the euro-zone crisis; possible capacity
problems; and the chance that Transnet will not reach the volumes needed to fund its
expansion.
Mr Molefe has been outspoken in his opposition to a Department of Transport plan
for rail reform, which proposes that Transnet be stripped of its rail infrastructure
assets and become an operator competing with private sector companies. The plan
was mooted in 2005 as part of the transport master plan but never implemented. It
resurfaced late last year and is now under discussion.
The idea has been welcomed by the private sector as opening the way to competition
in the rail sector. But Mr Molefe said such a plan would reduce Transnet‘s asset base,
thereby reducing its ability to borrow and risking a default with existing lenders.
Transnet was contracted to a 50% gearing rate in its borrowing arrangements. If the
asset base was reduced, the gearing would change and Transnet would be forced to re-
negotiate terms with lenders. This would constitute a default, he said.
"If you change the asset base, the gearing changes and if global market conditions
change and we borrow more expensively than we would otherwise, then gearing
projections will change. Everything has been put into our asset base as a fixed asset.
So if … you take it to another entity, then you take it out of Transnet."
Based on current projections, Transnet‘s gearing ratio would peak at 47% in 2013 -14
and 20014 -15 before declining again. At present, the gearing rate is 41%.
The euro-zone crisis also posed a risk to Transnet‘s infrastructure plan, R200bn of
which was to be funded from increased revenue, Mr Molefe said.
"If there is less demand for commodities, we won‘t generate the volumes and
revenues required. In that case we will have to moderate our expectations and the
programme would have to be revised."
Transnet‘s funding plan is based on a 178% increase in revenue over the seven-year
period, from R46bn in 2011-12 to R128bn in 2018-19. The increased revenue was
31 May 2012 44
based on higher volumes and only "moderate" increases in tariffs, he said. If the
company was unable to achieve the desired volumes, due to global conditions and
macroeconomic shocks or capacity problems, the investment programme would be
jeopardised.
Revenue growth was based on a 44% increase in coal volumes; a 57% escalation in
iron ore and a 113% rise in general freight business.
Restructuring the general freight business to be more customer oriented was one of
the key priorities if volumes were to be achieved, Mr Molefe said.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 2
Linda Ensor
SAA pleads poverty to Parliament
National carrier South African Airways repeatedly highlights the fact that its balance
sheet ‗does not look good at all‘
National carrier South African Airways (SAA) did not raise the sensitive question of a
recapitalisation by the state yesterday during a briefing to Parliament, but repeatedly
highlighted the fact that its balance sheet "does not look good at all" particularly in
view of the fleet-acquisition strategy it wishes to pursue in future.
Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba and the Treasury are discussing the merits
and size of a recapitalisation, but Mr Gigaba insisted at a media briefing recently that
only he would be commenting on the matter in future. This was after SAA CEO Siza
Mzimela hinted that SAA would be seeking R6bn from the state to fund its growth
strategy, strengthen its balance sheet and fleet renewal.
This would be in addition to the R1,3bn subordinated loan SAA already had from the
government, and the R1,6bn "going-concern" guarantee it had obtained to underpin its
cash requirements.
Mr Gigaba emphasised the strategic importance to SA of having a national carrier and
Ms Mzimela was at pains to point out the significant contribution the airline made to
the economy, both in terms of jobs and as an input into gross domestic product, in her
briefing to the public enterprises committee.
The head of SAA‘s audit committee, Zakhele Sithole, said SAA was in the process of
restructuring its balance sheet and was hoping that its shareholder would support this
initiative. Its highly geared balance sheet was not in good shape.
Ms Mzimela told the committee that the airline industry internationally was facing
extremely tough times, especially due to the "dramatically" higher fuel bill which had
cost SAA an extra R1,3bn net in the period to March after taking into account the
31 May 2012 45
recovery of the fuel levy. On the plus side, however, passenger revenue had risen by
20% in the last quarter of 2011-12.
The future outlook was not any brighter, with airline profits globally set to decline
even further in 2012-13. Nevertheless SAA was planning to extend its network of
destinations, with two new ones in Africa to be added this year.
SAA was engaged in an aggressive programme to reduce its non-fuel costs, Ms
Mzimela said, with the aim being to achieve cost reductions and "cost compressions"
of more than R1bn in 2012-13.
This was critical to the sustainability of the airline. A significant investment in new
fuel-efficient aircraft was also needed.
She said SAA expected to finalise a major aircraft order by year-end to replace the
current nonefficient long-haul aircraft. Over the next five years it would also take
delivery of 20 new fuel-efficient Airbus 320s to replace the existing short-haul fleet.
Ms Mzimela reported an 87% achievement for on-time performance of SAA flights
— the best performance in 12 years — and utilisation of the fleet had also improved
significantly. Mishandled baggage had declined 8%.
In a separate briefing to the committee, the Department of Public Enterprises‘ acting
deputy director-general, Weekend Bangane, allayed concerns of MPs over the risk
posed to Denel Aerostructures of having only one major client, Airbus, for which it is
producing components for its A400M programme.
He said this year‘s R700m state grant had enhanced the sustainability of the company
in the eyes of other customers as was the commitment of Airbus to the company. Mr
Bangane conceded, however, there were risks to the Airbus contract as Denel had to
ensure it retained its highly skilled staff.
Denel Aerostructures has forecast reporting a loss of about R200m in 2012-13 and to
break even in about 2016-17.
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 1
Wyndham Hartley
Sisulu Berates Mps Over Poor Laws, ‘Lack Of Scrutiny’
National Assembly speaker Max Sisulu expresses ‗deep concern‘ over the volume of
legislation that is being returned to the National Assembly for correction
31 May 2012 46
National Assembly Speaker Max Sisulu yesterday became one of the most senior
members of the African National Congress to criticise the poor standard of legislation
emerging from Parliament.
Several pieces of legislation have been rejected by the courts in recent years, and
controversial bills such as the Protection of State Information Bill, the Film and
Publications Amendment Bill, the Traditional Courts Bill and the Legal Practice Bill
have been withdrawn from Parliament and returned with warnings that they remain
unconstitutional.
Introducing the debate on his budget vote, Mr Sisulu expressed "deep concern" over
the volume of legislation that was being returned to the National Assembly for
correction after the National Council of Provinces or the courts found it to be
unconstitutional.
"This speaks both to the constitutionality of the legislation passed, as well as its
quality."
He reminded MPs that, because SA was a constitutional state, all laws had to pass the
test of constitutionality. "The poor quality of legislation is often the consequence of
inadequate scrutiny," Mr Sisulu said. "As the subject matter of legislation becomes
more sophisticated and highly technical, our Parliament and members must become
more professional."
He said a report of the Independent Panel Assessment of Parliament noted it did not
have sufficient capacity for drafting and amending legislation.
The constitutional and l egal s ervices o ffice was instructed to establish a legal
drafting unit, which was under way.
Democratic Alliance chief whip Watty Watson criticised the way Parliament was
managed.
"The National Assembly‘s arteries are clogged. Its processes and procedures stifle
free-flowing engagement between us and the government, between us as
nonexecutive members. And most importantly, between us and the South African
people," he said.
Freedom Front Plus chief whip Corné Mulder said Parliament had become "boring,
dull and a place of mediocrity. We the politicians operating in our parties and within
the structures of Parliament should take full responsibility for this unfortunate state of
affairs".
31 May 2012 47
30 May 2012
Business Day
Page 1
Allan Seccombe
Mine union ‘turf war’ hammers SA’s GDP
Impala Platinum keen for new recognition structure as output plummets
The effect of the six-week strike at Impala Platinum ( Implats ) earlier this year, when
rival unions battled for membership, was so severe it dragged down SA‘s growth in
the first quarter.
Yesterday, the world‘s second-largest platinum producer reported a 46% drop in gross
platinum output in the March quarter, which includes toll-treated material at its
smelters, to 230000oz compared to the same period a year ago.
The unprotected strike in January accounted for more than half of that loss, with
120000oz lost due directly to the stoppage and a further 21000oz as Implats mines in
the Rustenburg area struggled to return to full production. The financial loss to the
company from the strike was well above R2bn.
Statistics SA reported yesterday that mining production contracted by 16,8% in the
first quarter, mainly due to the strike.
"After a six-week strike at the group‘s core Rustenburg lease area mining complex, it
came as no real surprise that the group‘s production and costs were decimated," JP
Morgan Cazenove analysts Steve Shepherd and Allan Cooke said in a note yesterday.
Implats CEO David Brown said yesterday the company‘s mines in Rustenburg would
return to full production only next month.
The mines were hit by another two-day stoppage related to union rivalry this month,
with 3000oz of platinum lost each day.
The company is now verifying how many workers have left the National Union of
Mineworkers to join the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union
(Amcu), which until recently had no presence on platinum mines.
Implats said about 10000 of its total force of 30000 workers at its Rustenburg
operations were not members of any union.
Amcu claimed membership of 8000 workers and wants organisational rights on
Implats‘ Rustenburg mines.
"Whether this results in Amcu recognition at Implats remains to be seen, but this
development arguably points towards more complicated labour negotiations at
Rustenburg going forward," SBG Securities analyst Justin Froneman said yesterday.
31 May 2012 48
The process of withdrawing the NUM‘s recognition and giving it time to try to
reclaim its majority could take up to four months, but Implats was keen to bring the
unions into talks to set up a new recognition structure for two or three unions. This
would be to avoid a "winner takes it all" situation that could lead to further
disruptions, Mr Brown said.
"Platinum mining in SA has rarely, if ever, been more challenging for management
and shareholders, in our view," Mr Shepherd and Mr Cooke said.
28 May 2012 The Times Page 2 Nivashni Nair and Katharine Child
ANC boycott call 'backfires' The ANC and SACP's call to boycott Sunday newspaper City Press after it published a painting depicting President Jacob Zuma with his private parts showing might have backfired. Members of the public went out in force yesterday to buy the newspaper, which even got the backing of the unlikeliest supporter - expelled ANC Youth League president Julius Malema. Malema even wrote a column in the newspaper criticising the call for a boycott. Last week, ANC national spokesman Jackson Mthembu told protesters outside the Johannesburg High Court not to buy the newspaper because of its refusal to take down the controversial The Spear painting from its website. The ANC also threatened tostop advertising in the newspaper and asked subscribers to cancel their subscriptions. Yesterday, Mthembu said ANC, SACP, Cosatu and ANC Youth League members would march tomorrow to the Goodman Gallery "in numbers in support of another human being's dignity". By lunch time yesterday, City Press was sold out in many outlets and the hash tag #City Press was trending on Twitter. In his piece, Malema said he would buy the newspaper because "of all the freedoms contained in the Bill of Rights, the right we should defend with our lives is the right to hold different opinions on how we view society and how we think certain matters should be handled". "Banning newspapers simply because we disagree with them, and boycotting them on the basis of believing that our conception of truth is absolute, poses a real threat to our democracy."
31 May 2012 49
City Press editor Ferial Haffajee said it was too early to determine the impact of the boycott, but added she was aware that posters had been put up at a few shops calling for customers not to buy the paper. Tweeters posted photographs of their copies of the newspaper in a show of support. Some said they had bought up to five copies each. Talk Radio 702 presenter David O'Sullivan tweeted that the boycott call had made him a subscriber. "I always buy #City Press at the shop, but it took Gwede Mantashe to persuade me to get a subscription instead," he tweeted. Johannesburg resident Nikki Heyman went to three shops, only to find the newspaper sold out. Pick 'n Pay Rosebank manager David Pitso said the paper was sold out in his store for the first time yesterday. "We normally don't sell out City Press, only today," he said. 28 May 2012 The Times Page 3 Graeme Hosken
Mdluli feels squeeze Within a day of controversial crime intelligence boss Lieutenant-General Richard Mdluli being suspended, an inquiry has been launched into his conduct. Mdluli was suspended on Saturday for a second time after he ignored a direct order from acting national police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi to give reasons why he should not be suspended. The order was given two weeks ago when Mkhwanazi told Mdluli of his intention to suspend him. The suspension notice was served on Mdluli's lawyer, Ike Motloung, after Mdluli apparently went under the radar week. The inquiry was announced yesterday. Serious allegations against Mdluli, with "grave" consequences, emerged from an inquest into the murder of the husband of Mdluli's former lover. The internal inquiry is one of four investigations into Mdluli's conduct; the others are being made by the inspector-general of intelligence, the National Prosecuting Authority and the police.
31 May 2012 50
One of the allegations being investigated is that several top policemen conspired to prevent Mdluli from becoming national police commissioner and to remove him from the police. Mdluli included these allegations in a letter to President Jacob Zuma in which he promised to help Zuma in his re-election campaign. In the past two months Mdluli has narrowly escaped criminal prosecution for abuse of state resources, murder, defeating the ends of justice, and fraud and corruption. Police spokesman Brigadier Lindela Mashigo confirmed the internal inquiry. "It stems from serious allegations which recently emerged from the inquest," he said. Mashigo declined to elaborate. "All I can say is that they [the allegations] have grave consequences." Mashigo said the summary suspension notice was served on Mdluli's lawyer after Mdluli disappeared. "The suspension was enforced because, after receiving the type of information he did from the inquest, the national commissioner could not sit back and close his eyes and ears." National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga said the inquest was being heard in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court. "The police have declined Mdluli's request for financial assistance," said Mashigo. Asked if Mdluli had deliberately ignored the order, Mashigo said: "You can put it that way. The national commissioner was left with no choice but to sign the suspension notice. "The national commissioner has responsibilities and he is exercising them. "These include the reorganisation of the crime intelligence division to deal with maladministration." Jay Govender, legal adviser to the inspector-general of intelligence, commenting on the inspector-general's investigation, said: "The investigation is under way. Due to its wide terms of reference it is difficult to estimate its completion date. Once finalised, a report will follow containing findings and recommendations which will be submitted to the minister of police and to the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence." 27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 13
31 May 2012 51
Sibongakonke Shoba
Gauteng slams Zuma allies
ANC leaders in Gauteng are angry about what they say is premature campaigning by senior party leaders and cabinet ministers linked to President Jacob Zuma's campaign. A Gauteng leader who spoke on condition of anonymity said the matter dominated discussion at the party's two-day provincial executive committee (PEC) this weekend. Insiders said the PEC had recently been informed that Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa, Public Enterprise Minister Malusi Gigaba, Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi and MK Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) leader Kebby Maphatsoe had held "secret" meetings with branch leaders in Soweto, the West Rand and Kempton Park. A PEC member said if the allegations were true, these leaders had violated a national executive committee (NEC) directive that party members must refrain from discussing succession until October, when nominations would be opened. "The campaigning in Gauteng is in full swing ... They have been putting our branch and regional leaders under a lot of pressure. Their behaviour is factional," said a PEC member who also asked not to be named. Maphatsoe denied holding secret meetings with branch leaders but reiterated the MKMVA's support for Zuma. "The MKMVA was at the forefront of Zuma's campaign in 2007. That stance still stands. We have done an assessment of the performance of the leadership. We think Jacob Zuma has performed very well. We don't see why he should not be retained," said Maphatsoe. Gigaba dismissed the claim. "What rubbish is that?" he said. "It is that season ..... You are going to hear more of this nonsense." Nxesi's spokesman, Sabelo Mali, said the allegations were "founded" because his interaction with ANC branches was part of his duties. "The minister is deployed by government as a parliamentary constituency officer in Kempton Park. Part of his responsibility is to interact with his constituency and ANC branches." Mthethwa's spokesman, Zweli Mnisi, said the minister was not aware of such accusations: "The process of nomination of ANC leaders only commences in October this year and as a disciplined member [Mthethwa] does not and will not discuss internal ANC matters through the media." The ANC's spokesman in the province, Nkenke Kekana, confirmed that the PEC had received complaints about campaigning.
31 May 2012 52
"Some of our branches have raised this concern that they are being put under pressure to attend secret meetings. "These are bad habits that emerged before Polokwane. And we have discouraged that and indicated that any evaluation of the performance of the leaders of the ANC belongs to our branches and our structures. Any person who feels they need to discuss this thing with our branches should go to their branches or raise them within the structures of the ANC," said Kekana. The Gauteng PEC, under the leadership of Arts and Culture Minister Paul Mashatile, is known to be hostile to Zuma's second-term campaign. It is expected to endorse an "Anything But Zuma" campaign. According to an ANC insider, Gauteng leaders are, however, unlikely to back Fikile Mbalula's campaign to remove secretary-general Gwede Mantashe. A Gauteng leader said Zuma's lobbyists were failing in their attempts to sway the province in Zuma's favour. "People are telling them, 'On what basis are you calling us to secret meetings? It is the same approach towards Polokwane when ministers moved around (campaigning for former president Thabo Mbeki). The NEC said you can't do these things." However, a youth league leader in the province said the Gauteng PEC was itself campaigning for Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe. "People are obviously campaigning. Why are they complaining about the same thing that they themselves are doing?" said the youth leader. Gauteng is scheduled to hold a provincial general council in the next two weeks, when the succession issue is expected to be discussed. 27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 5 Candice Bailey
Impatience and politics lead to SKA site split South Africa had to give up a slice of the world's biggest astronomy project this week to avoid any further delays in its implementation. Leaders of the local bid to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) agreed that "politics" had played a role in South Africa having to share the project with Australia and New Zealand. Speaking to the Sunday Times after the announcement on Friday, Professor Justin Jonas from SKA South Africa said the decision was a matter of "consensus politics". "The independent [advisory] team had said the technical solution was a single site in South Africa. But, in reality, in big international projects there is some degree of politics at play," Jonas said.
31 May 2012 53
The SKA radio telescope, which will be completed by 2024, will be the world's largest and most sensitive, able to probe deep into space. South Africa had been working on its bid since 2003 and was widely tipped as the frontrunner. The decision on the host site should have been announced in April, but it was delayed after a report by the advisory committee recommending South Africa was leaked to the media. The announcement was made after a meeting of members of the SKA consortium at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. Residents of Carnarvon in the Karoo were yesterday overjoyed at the announcement. Liz McKinnon, owner of the Lemon Tree Coffee Shop, said: "I listened to the news over the radio ...I think it is absolutely fantastic because this is a very poor community." Esau Hoorn, owner of Jumani Funerals, said: "It is exciting, but the community is unsure how it will affect their lives." He hoped the telescope would find new planets so that one could be named after the town. Jonas said scientists and politicians would have grown impatient over further delays in the decision-making process. The split means that one of the three SKA receivers will be set up in Australia and two in South Africa. The project will proceed in two phases. The first will set up about 10% of the entire SKA project and use the MeerKAT telescope being built in the Karoo by South African scientists and engineers, as well as a similar telescope in Australia, as its basis. Phase two will result in about 4000 dishes being erected in Africa. Jonas said 10% would be split among the eight partner countries in Africa, namely Ghana, Botswana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Zambia, Namibia and Mozambique. Of those remaining, 50% would be placed in the Karoo and 40% in the rest of South Africa. Jonas said if there was a technical justification for preferring South Africa, it was because the Karoo had a 1000m elevation, much higher than the Australian site . Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor said she was ecstatic that South Africa had been awarded the majority of the project, and accepted the compromise in the interest of its progress.
27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 1 Prega Govender
31 May 2012 54
Suffer the children This is the shocking face of education for the children of Selowe Primary in Limpopo - 18 years after free and equal education was promised to all by South Africa's first democratic government. At this school, the 14 teachers and principal are not paid a cent for teaching 165 children. And the provincial department of education will not recognise the pupils' promotion to the next grade at the end of this year. Yet every morning the teachers report for duty and conduct lessons according to the official curriculum, under marula trees. Trees are allocated for each of the grades. The Grade R pupils are accommodated in a shack that becomes unbearably hot in summer and freezing cold during winter. The words "principal's office" are written in black paint on a piece of cardboard that has been nailed to another marula tree. The board also has principal Evans Seanego's cellphone number. About 100 parents took the decision in August last year not to send their children to schools in two neighbouring villages when two children were almost raped while walking through the bush to school - after the department cancelled the bus service. A 13-member delegation of people from Silvermine village handed a memorandum to the Limpopo Department of Education circuit office on December 22 last year, informing it of their decision and demanding mobile classrooms, textbooks and teachers. The department failed to respond to the memorandum in the seven-day period it was given. The pupils, who live in Silvermine, about 120km from Polokwane, do without textbooks, stationery, chairs, desks - and even toilets. There is no water and teachers and pupils have to relieve themselves in the bush. Although the department has been aware of the school's existence since January, said the teachers, it has done nothing to assist. Authorities instead offered to provide transport to two state schools in neighbouring villages, but parents rejected this. Last year the department provided a bus service for only three months, then abruptly cancelled it. From April to December last year, pupils had to walk through dense bush to the schools, about 10km away. "The community was very worried about their children's safety, especially when they had to walk through the bush to the other schools. There were two attempted rapes last year," Seanego said. "The only solution is for them [the department] to register this school and provide mobile classrooms," Seanego said.
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Two of the teachers have diplomas. Most of the others have a matric qualification. Community members produced written correspondence from as far back as October 2010 in which a department official indicated his support for the building of a school. A chief environmental officer who inspected the proposed site said it was suitable for a school. But according to minutes of a meeting between the department and Seanego in April, the department said: "Currently there are no resources to establish such a school." Pupils and volunteer teachers this week pleaded with the department to provide desks, chairs, textbooks, stationery and qualified teachers. Phuti Mahlakgane, 12, said he liked attending his new school because it was close to home. "But we want to be promoted to the next grade at the end of this year. We attend class every day like everyone else and we should be promoted," he said. Fellow pupil Koena Papola, 12, said: "It's getting very cold now and we can't sit on the cold, hard ground because it's very uncomfortable." Grade 2 teacher Francina Maphakela said she spent R16 a day on taxi fare. "Yes, we know these children won't be promoted to the next grade at the end of the year and our work is in vain. But I am prepared to teach here, even for 10 years without pay, until the government recognises this school," she said. Her colleague Margaret Hlako said she wanted to help change the children's lives. "I feel for them. Some of them don't even have shoes, yet they come to school. It will be heartbreaking if they have to remain in the same grade next year." Education department spokes-man Pat Kgomo, who said the schooling issue at Silvermine was a "crisis", was adamant pupils would not be promoted because "to us, there's no school there". "Nobody is assessing their work; those are not qualified teachers. We want it solved so we can see what catch-up programme we can put in place." Kgomo said that the department had given the community an undertaking that it would provide a temporary structure next year. 27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 1 Mzilikazi Wa Afrika, Rob Rose, Stephan Hofstatter and Sibusiso Ngalwa
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ANC ponders new role for 'Cele the liar' Suspended top cop Bheki Cele should face a criminal probe into the irregular awarding of leases worth R1.7-billion in Pretoria and Durban, a judge has recommended in a damning 114-page report. Cornered by the probe's harsh findings, Cele is now fighting for his political life and may be thrown a lifeline by the ANC's KwaZulu-Natal structures. The commission of inquiry led by Judge Jake Moloi found that Cele was "dishonest" and "not fit" to hold office. It called on President Jacob Zuma to fire him and recommended a criminal probe. This week, it emerged that two Fridays ago Cele met a number of KwaZulu-Natal ANC chairmen on the sidelines of the party's provincial conference to discuss his possible return to the ANC national executive committee if he is fired . An ANC leader described the talks as "informal". Cele's spokesman, Vuyo Mkhize, confirmed the meeting. But of Cele's possible return to the NEC, Mkhize would only say: "That question does not arise as long as Cele is still in the police." Cele has since written to Zuma arguing that he should ignore the inquiry's findings, as they were "inappropriate". Zuma has yet to announce how he will act on the report's findings. A senior civil servant in the Presidency said: "It is a sensitive matter, one that the president would have to consider carefully before taking action. My sense is that he is not going to rush into making a decision, but you never know." Another official said that Zuma's options would be made particularly difficult by the fact that Cele still commands considerable support in KwaZulu-Natal's ANC structures. "There is no doubt that Cele is still popular, and although his axing won't turn the province against the president, how it is handled is important because it can leave some irritated enough to oppose the president's re-election." Zuma is running for re-election as ANC president and is banking on KwaZulu-Natal, which will send the largest delegation to the party conference in December, to vote as a block for his second term. Last Sunday, Zuma was given a 114-page report by the commission he appointed to probe Cele's dodgy leases, and the Sunday Times understands the three-member panel took the president through the recommendations point by point. The panel said Cele "was not truthful" and tried to "mislead" Zuma when he denied personally identifying the two buildings that he wanted the police to lease from businessman Roux Shabangu.
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Crucially, the findings suggest Zuma should initiate a criminal probe into Cele to determine exactly why he broke the rules to benefit Shabangu. "It is recommended that these relationships [between Cele, Shabangu and public works officials] be referred to competent authorities for further investigation ... on account of the board's lack of powers to subpoena witnesses or conduct searches and seizures." It said the evidence "proved abundantly that there was a questionable relationship" between Cele, Shabangu and public works officials, but because of the limits on its powers, it could not probe deeper. Mkhize told the Sunday Times that the call for "further investigation" was "devious" and "dishonest", but said Cele would "definitely" accept a criminal probe if it came to that. Zuma is now facing intense lobbying from Cele, whose lawyers gave the president a 23-page document on Friday calling on him "not to accept" the "inappropriate" recommendations. That legal response, now in the Sunday Times's possession, says Judge Moloi's panel was "cavalier and impermissibly selective in the treatment of the relevant evidence" and reached "absurd findings". On Friday, Cele's spin team said that, irrespective of Zuma's decision, he planned to go to court to "review" the "scandalous" report and also possibly sue the panel for defamation. "The president is entitled to make any [decision], and whatever decision that he may [make] is justified. Our desire is to see this report certified as the fraud that it is," said Mkhize. Zuma, meanwhile, is biding his time on making a decision. Zuma's spokesman, Mac Maharaj, said he "can't go into processes and put a time frame on [when he will act], but I can say the president is aware that this is an urgent and serious matter, and he'll make known his response as soon as possible". The panel's report clinically dismantles Cele's argument against the Sunday Times exposé . "The grave misconduct by the national commissioner and his lack of appreciating his unlawful conduct, despite overwhelming evidence, proved unquestionably that he is not fit to hold office and that he is unable to execute his official duties efficiently." The report says Cele was effectively Shabangu's puppet, finding that he "grossly misconducted" himself and "was bent on ensuring that Shabangu secured the Durban lease at all costs". "[Cele's] resolve to ensure, at all costs, that the SAPS was going to rent buildings belonging or linked to Shabangu, at demonstrably exorbitant rates, when he clearly knew Shabangu, indicates that he acted with an undeclared conflict of interest."
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The inquiry found that he pushed for the police to lease 25301m² worth of space, far more than was needed. And, five months before the Pretoria lease was struck at an exorbitant price of R125.40/m², the police were offered the lease at a price of R85/m². But the panel went far beyond Cele, painting a picture of rampant dishonesty in the police and corruption in the Department of Public Works. This includes findings that: ■Senior police officials - including SAPS chief operations officer Christina Mgwenya and Kwazulu-Natal provincial commissioner Lt-Gen Mmamonnye Ngobeni - lied to protect Cele. The inquiry said "for them to mislead the board, and do so under oath, is disturbing"; ■There was "sufficient evidence of corrupt activities taking place" in the Department of Public Works to benefit cronies of public officials. The panel said public works deputy director Mokhaetji Tlolane was a "pathetic witness" and her testimony only proved that "irregularities are committed as a matter of course"; ■Shabangu himself was asked to testify, but "flatly turned down the invitation" and did not co-operate with the board of inquiry; and ■The inquiry found that many of the "public submissions" supporting Cele were part of a orchestrated propaganda campaign. "Unfortunately, most such submissions were clearly typed by the same person, and were identical word for word, except for the names ... of the people making them". A turning point in the commission was evidence given that Cele summoned police supply-chain head General Hamilton Hlela to a car park in Boksburg after a police gala event on March 24 2010, where he said cryptically that "someone" would call him about renting the buildings to the police. It was Shabangu who called Hlela soon after to negotiate the lease of his Pretoria building. Though Cele denied it, the inquiry said the only logical conclusion was that Cele "knew Shabangu and that he gave him Hlela's contact number [and] consequently had an interest in Shabangu securing the lease". Cele's lawyers have accused the inquiry of taking a "lop-sided" view, ignoring evidence and incorrectly branding Cele's witnesses as "dishonest". "The board's recommendation simply rests on the erroneous conclusions that [Cele] acted unlawfully in relation to the procurement of the leases. [Cele] gave an account of how he relied on the experts in the [police supply-chain office] to deal with the [leases]. The error on his part was to trust them and their expertise. By any standard, this cannot amount to misconduct." But the panel said Cele's insistence that his subordinates should carry the blame showed that he failed to appreciate that "the ultimate responsibility rests with him". 27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 2 Thabo Mokone and Caiphus Kgosana
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Bid to shut Manyi's mouth Controversial government spokesman Jimmy Manyi's future hangs in the balance following complaints within the upper echelons of government over his abrasive style of communication. Three independent sources within government have told the Sunday Times that a number of cabinet ministers have registered their unhappiness over Manyi's habit of making what they regard as insensitive remarks. He has apparently been reported to his political boss Collins Chabane, the Minister of Performance, Monitoring and Evaluation. Government insiders close to the issue said the ministers were specifically angered by Manyi's recent statements on the Gauteng highway tolls. Manyi told the media in February that the public should accept the tolls because they were not "just a bad dream". "It's a reality, it's going to happen. No one should have any illusion whatsoever that this thing is going to go away," he said at the time. It is understood that this did not sit well with some ministers who have now lost patience with Manyi and want him removed. The ministers who complained to Chabane are said to have argued, among other things, that Manyi's comments on e-tolls only hardened resistance to them. One insider said Manyi's handling of the issue had created the image of an uncaring government. "That led to a groundswell of public opinion against the tolls. No wonder government lost in court," the source said. Another insider said President Jacob Zuma had already been informed of the intention not to renew Manyi's contract. Jessie Duarte, a former ANC spokeswoman and now chief operations officer in the Presidency, has been mentioned as a possible successor. Manyi, who is no stranger to controversy, joined the government in August 2009 as director-general of the Labour Department. But he had a frosty relationship with the then minister, Membathisi Mdladlana. He was transferred to the Government Communication and Information Service as CEO, a position that elevated him to cabinet spokesman. His three-year contract expires in August. Manyi declined to comment when contacted on Friday. "All of this I'm hearing for the first time from you and I am not going to say anything further, so don't bother asking any more questions, I am not going to say anything further ... nothing whatsoever," he said.
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Harold Maloka, spokesman for Chabane, said yesterday: "The minister does not discuss matters relating to employees' employment conditions in the media. "The minister does, in the normal course of executing his duties as the executive authority, from time-to-time meet with heads of all entities that report to his office to discuss work-related matters." Those with intimate knowledge of the matter said Chabane would write to Manyi in coming weeks to inform him that his contract would not be renewed, in line with public service regulations that a head of department be given three months' notice. Chabane is also planning to act on the recommendations of the Public Service Commission which found that Manyi had violated the Public Services Act by failing to obtain written approval to continue in his post as a director of the Black Management Forum's investment arm while he was director-general of the Department of Labour. The commission report, released in February, recommended that Chabane take "appropriate disciplinary steps" against Manyi. When he was appointed in 2010, several government communicators questioned Manyi's suitability for the job, arguing that he had no experience of dealing with the media. 27 May 2012 Sunday Times Page 4 Staff
How we nailed Cele: Reporters were illegally bugged as they pursued the story A two-page document leaked to the Sunday Times in 2010 started it all. The document suggested that national police commissioner General Bheki Cele wanted to move the SA Police Service head office into a building owned by businessman Roux Shabangu - without following proper procedure. After the Sunday Times broke the story on August 1 2010, a blustering Cele called a press conference to deny any wrongdoing. In typical cowboy style, the police boss, who is now facing the axe, called our reporters, who wrote the story, "shady". Two days later, one of the authors of the original report, Mzilikazi wa Afrika, was arrested on spurious charges that were later withdrawn. He was held without bail, interrogated about his political leanings and denied access to his lawyers for several hours. It was reminiscent of the bad old days of detention without trial.
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Wa Afrika has since filed a lawsuit for wrongful arrest and the matter is scheduled to go on trial in November. The Sunday Times has also filed a suit to claim costs relating to his unlawful arrest. A day before Wa Afrika was detained, advocate Paul Hoffman, director of the Institute for Accountability, had lodged a complaint with the public protector asking her to probe Cele. The dirty tricks intensified. As our reporters continued investigating the police lease scandal, they became targets of smear campaigns, their movements were monitored and their cellphone communications intercepted. The inspector-general of intelligence, Faith Radebe, has since confirmed that the Hawks bugged Wa Afrika's cellphone. Later that year, two more cellphones, used by Wa Afrika and his colleague Stephan Hofstatter, were illegally bugged for about three months. This has been confirmed by police investigating the matter. As a result, the head of crime intelligence in KwaZulu-Natal, Major-General Deena Moodley, has been suspended from his job. But the pressure on Cele continued to mount. Shortly after our exposé in August 2010, former public works minister Geoff Doidge suspended the lease for the Sanlam Middestad building in Pretoria - owned by Shabangu - based on a damning legal opinion by law firm Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr. President Jacob Zuma fired Doidge two months later and replaced him with Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde. Mahlangu-Nkabinde wasted no time reinstating the Pretoria lease, despite receiving two legal opinions in December 2010, telling her the agreement was unlawful Separately, the Sunday Times exposed Shabangu again in another shady police lease tender, worth R1-billion, for the relocation of the provincial SAPS in Durban. Following our report, that deal was stopped. In February 2011, public protector Thuli Madonsela released her first report into the Middestad building lease, which found that Cele's conduct was "improper, unlawful and amounted to maladministration". Madonsela released her second report into both the Durban and Pretoria police lease deals, now calculated to be worth R1.7-billion, and found Cele and Mahlangu-Nkabinde guilty of improper conduct and maladministration for their roles in driving both deals in July 2011. It took Zuma almost four months to act on Madonsela's report. He fired Mahlangu-Nkabinde and suspended Cele in October.
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A month later, Zuma appointed a board of inquiry to probe Cele's fitness to hold office. The inquiry started on March 5 and submitted its report last Sunday. Cele-lies v The Board's findings: ■CELE: I do not know who identified that building. ■BOARD: The buildings were identified by the national commissioner personally. He favoured the buildings owned by Shabangu. ■CELE: The reports that I know the owner of the building [are] completely not true. ■BOARD: The national commissioner clearly knew Shabangu. ■CELE: The needs assessment by the SAPS was duly signed off by me. That is where my role as accounting officer for the SAPS ends. ■THE BOARD: Cele pushed for the entire building in both Pretoria and Durban to be leased by the SAPS, even when the needs analysis showed that a lesser amount of space was required. ■CELE: The Department of Public Works has issued a media statement that absolves me of any wrongdoing. ■BOARD: The conduct of all those involved in the deals in the DPW is sufficient evidence of corrupt activities taking place in it, indicative of the rot that has set in and the promotion of favoured parties to the detriment of the state. ■CELE: The police pushed the urgency of the matter. Yes, those two floors were urgent. ■BOARD: No urgency existed. The purported urgency was thus unjustified and was of their own making. 28 May 2012 Business Day Page 2 Linda Ensor
Planned protest keeps Spear in spotlight The ANC and its alliance partners are mobilising supporters to participate in a protest march on Tuesday morning to the Goodman Gallery The uproar over the painting depicting President Jacob Zuma with his genitals exposed is set to continue dominating headlines this week (Cosatu). The African National Congress (ANC) and its alliance partners are mobilising supporters to participate in a protest march tomorrow morning to the Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg which displayed the controversial work by artist Brett Murray. The gallery removed the painting after it was defaced by protesters. Emotions are expected to run high during the march. Mr Zuma will be in the spotlight on other fronts as well. He is expected to take action on a damning report by the board of inquiry into the role played by suspended national police commissioner
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Bheki Cele in contracting R1,7bn worth of leases for police headquarters in Pretoria and Durban. The board recommended that Gen Cele be fired, but he rejected the findings and has vowed to take the matter to court. Under close scrutiny will be the fate of suspended head of the police’s crime intelligence unit, Richard Mdluli. There is also the possible removal of acting police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi. Mr Zuma and Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe together with Performance Monitoring and Evaluation Minister Collins Chabane and National Planning Minister Trevor Manuel will be in the National Assembly on Wednesday and Thursday to participate in the budget debate on the Presidency. Measures to fight corruption and introduce greater accountability in the public service will be raised. So too will be the Presidency’s bid to co-ordinate infrastructure planning across government and state-owned companies though the presidential infrastructure co-ordinating commission. Opposition parties could also question the cost of support for Mr Zuma and his family of wives and children, which has escalated over the past few years. The Presidency is expected to release its mid-term review, which is an assessment of the performance of government against targets. Members of Parliament will also discuss Parliament’s own budget vote tomorrow. The Congress of South African Trade Unions’ (Cosatu’s) central executive committee meets for three days from today. It will finalise the federation’s position on crucial political questions ahead of its national congress in September, including whether or not Cosatu’s top leaders should sit on the ANC’s national executive committee as ex officio members. E-tolling, labour brokers, education, youth unemployment, climate change, the energy crisis, retirement funds and national health insurance (NHI) are among the issues to be discussed. The Financial and Fiscal Commission will table its recommendations for 2013-2014 in Parliament today. Its report focuses on a number of issues impacting on government’s fiscal policy and the way budgets are spent by the different spheres. Committee meetings of interest scheduled for the week include tomorrow’s progress with its turnaround plan. The ad hoc committee on the Protection of State Information Bill will be briefed by the State Security Agency on proposed amendments to the bill. The Democratic Alliance meanwhile, has a number of press conferences lined up.
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Today it will be on the party’s proposals to protect children from sexual offences; tomorrow on its views on the government’s labour bills. It will tackle harbour management on Friday.
25 May 2012
Mail and Guardian
Pearlie Joubert
ANC interference prompts Pikoli sacking
The former head of the National Prosecuting Authority, advocate Vusi Pikoli, finds
himself unemployed again because of political interference.
This time, though, he has lost his job in the private sector after his bosses at the fifth-
largest auditing firm in the country, Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo (SNG), asked him to
resign because ―some ANC people‖ threatened to cut off government contracts if they
did not fire Pikoli.
In a startling interview, Pikoli, once a shareholder, director and partner in the forensic
investigations at the firm, confirmed to the Mail & Guardian he was indeed
unemployed after he was told ―there is a clear expectation to resign‖ at the end of
February this year.
Pikoli left Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo in the middle of March.
―I am reluctant to speak about leaving SNG,‖ Pikoli said. ―But yes, I was told that
there was a clear expectation of me to resign because some unnamed people in the
ANC were not happy that I was working for SNG and that it would in future be
difficult to award contracts to SNG because of me, I was told.‖
Who to employ
―I did tell the company that if I resigned I would be unable to lie about the reasons for
leaving.
I warned them that it‘s not the business of government to tell them who to employ and
who not [to],‖ he said.
Pikoli said he was first told, telephonically, towards the end of last year that ―there‘s a
problem. Gobodo [Nonkululeku Gobodo, chairperson of the firm] phoned me and
said: ‗Vusi, there is this thing … this problem of yours with the ANC is coming up
again and is causing concerns in the company. Some people in the ANC told me that
we would no longer get government work because you are working here. ANC people
are now threatening not to give us work,‘ she told me,‖ Pikoli said.
Gobodo refused to name ―the ANC people‖ who had raised objections to Pikoli‘s
employment at the company when Pikoli asked. ―She didn‘t want to tell me who
exerted pressure on her to fire me,‖ he said.
31 May 2012 65
The first job Pikoli lost was as national director of public prosecutions at the NPA
when he was controversially suspended on Heritage Day, September 24 2007 by then-
president Thabo Mbeki and subsequently fired by then-president Kgalema Motlanthe
(see ―A history of ruffling official feathers‖).
Pikoli said about 90% of SNC‘s work came from the government. ―Gobodo told me
[the awarding of] the Transnet contract is gathering dust on the [public enterprise]
minister‘s desk because I‘m employed at SNG. She said that [the audit contract] had
sat on the minister‘s desk for a long time and that the delay in the sign-off was
because of me,‖ Pikoli said.
Private matter
Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo is a large firm that employs more than 800 people. It has 45
directors and its biggest single contract is with Transnet – a five-year contract worth
an estimated R70-million a year. It was awarded the contract in February.
The total value of the Transnet external auditing contract, R300-million, has never
before been awarded to a 100% black-owned auditing firm. It is also the first time that
one of the ―big four‖ auditing firms – PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, Ernst &
Young and KPMG – did not land the job.
The firm‘s chief executive, Victor Sekese, answering on behalf of Gobodo, said: ―The
exit of Vusi Pikoli from Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo is a private matter between the two
parties. We have not been instructed by anybody on this matter. We have no further
comments.‖
Sekese also denied any political interference: ―Transnet have their own procurement
processes that they follow in the appointment of auditors and so does the government
as a shareholder. In addition, we were never at any stage asked by either Transnet or
the department of public enterprises to dismiss Vusi Pikoli.‖
Both Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba and Transnet denied that Pikoli‘s
version of why he was asked to resign was correct.
According to Transnet spokesperson MbonisoSigonyela, the awarding of the contract
to Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo was already decided at a Transnet board meeting on
November 24 last year. Yet the minister only decided on February 14 to appoint the
firm and made the announcement on February 20.
Under pressure
Curiously, just days after the November 2011 Transnet board meeting, Pikoli got the
first inkling that Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo was under pressure to get rid of him.
―I was first called at the end of last year and told of this pressure to get rid of me when
Gobodo phoned, saying there‘s an issue with my employment at SNG. Days later I
was told by Gobodo to ‗ignore‘ the conversation. But then, right after the
announcement of SNG landing the Transnet contract, I was asked to resign,‖ Pikoli
said.
31 May 2012 66
Gigaba announced the awarding of the Transnet contract at a press conference on
February 20. Barely a week later, Pikoli was paid six months‘ salary and asked to
leave with immediate effect.
―I was asked to finish the work I was busy with but asked to resign immediately. I left
by the middle of March. My resignation was effective from the end of February,‖
Pikoli said.
According to his shareholder‘s agreement, he had to be given three months‘ notice.
Amazing coincidence
Pikoli refused to speculate about whether it was Gigaba himself who had pressed
Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo to fire him. ―I don‘t know and I don‘t want to speculate.
There was this amazing coincidence, though,‖ Pikoli said.
As the sole shareholder of Transnet, Gigaba, as the minister of public enterprises, had
the final say on the awarding of the auditing contract. He held various meetings with
the Transnet board about it.
Gigaba‘s spokesperson, Mayihlome Tshwete, said in a statement to the M&G that the
minister had merely implemented the recommendation from the board of a state-
owned enterprise. ―The minister did not set any conditions for SNG in its
deliberations with Transnet, least of all that SNG should dissociate themselves from
any of its employees or associates. Allegations to the contrary are false and
malicious,‖ Tshwete said.
Sigonyela said: ―Transnet has never made it a requirement of the awarding of the
contract that any employee of Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo must resign. We wish to state
categorically that no one at Transnet required that advocate Pikoli leave his employ.‖
He also said Transnet was ―not aware of hostility between advocate Pikoli and the
ANC‖.
Pikoli told the M&G that when Gobodo and Sekese called him to a meeting during
which he was pressured to resign, Gobodo said she ―can‘t justify losing contracts
because of one person‖.
Losing business
―She said as chair it would be difficult to justify to directors losing government
contracts and as the leadership she had to look after the more than 800 employees.
She said SNG will not issue a statement announcing my resignation.
―So I resigned. If there was this feeling that I‘m causing them to lose business and I‘m
working with people who are not happy with me, I can‘t work in that environment,‖
Pikoli said.
When Gigaba officially announced the Transnet contract, he said: ―The appointment
of SNG takes place during a critical time for Transnet when it is rolling out a capital
expenditure programme worth R300-billion to the economy, linking communities,
towns, cities and provinces and creating sustainable economic development. We hope
that the accounting firm will not only be focusing on number crunching for Transnet,
31 May 2012 67
but will become a strategic business adviser and support Transnet in meeting its
national objectives.‖
Gobodo appointed Pikoli as head of the forensic unit at Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo in
August 2010. At the time, Gobodo, the first black female chartered accountant in
South Africa, proudly issued a press statement stating how South Africa‘s top
prosecutor was ―head-hunted‖ to run the forensics unit at the firm.
―Good governance and transparency have become increasingly crucial,‖ Gobodo said.
―We believe that he is the right calibre of person to lead the strong forensics team – he
has excellent skills and training. It was a decision taken in the interests of the firm,
although we knew that there could be political perceptions attached to it.
Angry and frustrated
―He brings an enormous wealth of experience in the investigation and prosecution of
serious financial and complex economic rimes, including fraud and corruption,‖ she
said.
Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo declined to comment on reasons why Pikoli was asked to
resign.
Pikoli said he was ―angry and frustrated‖ when he was asked to leave. ―It‘s important
to jealously guard one‘s independence, professionalism and integrity. To be told what
to do by a government is not acceptable in forensics. I could not and still can‘t believe
that people in the ANC would deny me a means of a livelihood.‖
Pikoli is an active branch member of the ANC. As member of the advisory council of
the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution, Pikoli was
instrumental when it joined the Centre for Applied Legal Studies in litigation against
the government.
The two bodies took it to the Constitutional Court last year challenging the
constitutionality, validity and legality of President Jacob Zuma‘s decision to request
Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo to continue to perform active service for a further
period of five years.
They won the case against government, arguing that Zuma‘s decision would infringe
on the principle of the separation of powers, the rule of law and the independence of
the judiciary.
A history of ruffling official feathers
Vusumzi Pikoli (54) grew up in Port Elizabeth and joined the ANC while he was still
in high school. ―Like most of my friends, we were guerrillas by night and students by
day,‖ he said.
Pikoli went to school in Mtatha and obtained his master‘s degree in law from the
University of Zimbabwe. He went into exile to receive military training as an
UmkhontoweSizwe soldier in Angola in 1980 and also worked for the ANC‘s legal
and constitutional department in exile.
31 May 2012 68
Pikoli returned to South Africa in 1990 and was in private practice until 1994, when
he was appointed as special adviser to then-justice minister Dullah Omar. In 1997 he
became deputy director general in the department of justice and constitutional
development and two years later was promoted to the post of director general.
In February 2005 he was appointed as national director of public prosecutions at the
NPA. He was at its helm during the country‘s most politically dramatic period: when
criminal charges were instigated against the then South Africa police commissioner,
Jackie Selebi and the ANC‘s president, Jacob Zuma.
Then-president Thabo Mbeki suspended him – Selebi was a close ally and friend of
Mbeki. Pikoli was subsequently fired by then-president Kgalema Motlanthe, who was
a Zuma ally.
Political interference
He ultimately lost his job because he refused to allow political interference with the
work of the NPA. It was after his refusal to grant Mbeki a requested two-week period
before issuing a warrant of arrest for Selebi that the then-president suspended him,
hoping it would help him to beat the odds at Polokwane.
He was suspended weeks before the ANC‘s Polokwane conference while Mbeki was
fighting for his political life. At the time Zuma was still facing corruption charges,
which were also dealt with by Pikoli‘s office.
The subsequent Ginwala commission, which was set up to determine Pikoli‘s fitness
to head the NPA, found him ―a person of unimpeachable integrity and a fit and proper
person to hold office‖. Yet Motlanthe sacked him in what was seen as the
government‘s insistence to punish insubordination to the ANC.
Menzi Simelane, the man instrumental in Pikoli‘s sacking, replaced him as the new
head of the NPA in 2008.
At the Ginwala commission Simelane‘s conduct was found to be ―highly irregular and
left much to be desired‖. It was Simelane who drafted the letter that contained an
unconstitutional instruction to Pikoli not to arrest Selebi. Pikoli disobeyed the
instruction, precipitating the crisis that led to his suspension and firing.
Pikoli contested his dismissal and on August 11 2009 was granted an interim interdict
by the high court in Pretoria that prevented Zuma from appointing a successor to the
position.
On November 21 that year the government reached an out-of-court settlement with
Pikoli to stop his legal bid for reinstatement. Part of the settlement was that Pikoli
would be employed by government, but he declined.
Pikoli was head-hunted by Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo 18 months ago but was asked to
resign in February.