The sluggish movement of Parliamentary bureaucracy seems to be going in the right direction as far as the Joint Standing Committee on Defence is concerned.
Thirteen Parliamentarians, including four from the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), were more than two months ago named as members of the Joint Standing Committee on Defence. Since then the committee has been unable to start work due to it not having a chairman to lead its deliberations.
This changes tomorrow when a meeting to elect “co-chairpersons” takes place in Parliament’s Committee Room One at 90 Plein Street. The 8.30am meeting, according to committee secretary, Mrs B Madikane, is a crucial one.
Those named to the committee from the ruling party are former chairman Malusi Stanley Motimele, Bongani Thomas Bongo, Zephroma Sizani Dlamini-Dubazana, Dennis Gamede, Adelaide Mnisi and James Jim Skosana. The Democratic Alliance (DA) representatives are David Maynier and Shahid Esau, the party’s shadow defence and shadow deputy defence ministers, while the EFF will be represented by its defence and military veterans spokesman Paul Ramakatsa.
NCOP representatives on the committee are LC Dlamini (Gauteng), EM Mlambo (Mpumalanga), T Motlashuping (North West) – all ANC – and the DA’s George Michalakis (Free State).
It is not clear whether the planned weekend strategic meeting scheduled for October 24 to 26 will still go ahead. This was one of six meetings set for the Joint Standing Committee on Defence in a scheduled published in August.
Items on the provisional agenda included the Defence Review, the Defence Secretariat, assessment of financial and performance related information in both the Department of Defence and the SA National Defence Force and the Department of Military Veterans.
The annual reports for 2014/15 of both the Department of Defence and the Department of Military Veterans, important from the point of view of Parliament’s oversight task, have yet to be tabled in the National Assembly.
Earlier this month Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told Parliament the annual report of the military veterans side of her Ministry would not be tabled in accordance with the Public Finance Management Act.
The delay is due to the Department of Military Veterans’ chief financial officer being placed on special leave at the beginning of August pending disciplinary action, she informed Speaker Baleka Mbete in a letter.
On the Defence Review, a document that will set the tone for future defence policy and direction for the next 20 to 30 years, Maynier maintains it is unacceptable for it to have become “bogged down”.
“The Review has been gathering dust in Parliament for more than three months. The Joint Standing Committee on Defence must make recommendations to the Minister,” he said.
