The Democratic Alliance has welcomed confirmation from the government that the next phase of its nuclear procurement process has been stalled indefinitely‚ which it hopes is the first step towards its outright cancellation.
DA spokesman on energy Gordon Mackay said this had been confirmed by Minister of Energy Tina Joemat-Pettersson in the Energy Portfolio Committee on Wednesday morning.
“The Minister’s admission came in response to a question I posed in committee relating to the Request for Proposal (RFP) that was scheduled to be issued on 1 April‚” Mackay said.
“The Democratic Alliance (DA)‚ which has been calling for the nuclear programme to be abandoned from the outset‚ welcomes this move as the first step toward its outright cancellation‚” he added.
He said Joemat-Pettersson informed the committee that the April 1 deadline was not met and that no new date for the issuing of the RFP had been set‚ signalling that the procurement process was now in limbo.
“The follows my letter to the Minister last week in which I asked her to suspend the process in the light of a number of procedural irregularities. The ANC government simply cannot proceed with a nuclear procurement process that is not open‚ transparent and free from corruption.”
Mackay said the DA had staunchly opposed the nuke deal since it was first revealed that the South African government‚ under the direct leadership of President Jacob Zuma‚ had signed an agreement with the Russian state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom.
“This agreement was entered into without the correct process being followed and raised serious questions relating to potential corruption given the personal involvement of the President. Further questions were raised after the purchase of Shiva Uranium by the Guptas‚ suggesting that the nuclear deal is a project of state capture for the personal benefit of a connected few and opens the door for corruption of the highest order.
“While today’s admission is a victory for the people of South Africa who cannot afford to bear the burden of an ill-advised and unaffordable nuclear programme‚ the DA will not rest until the project has been abandoned outright.
“In the interim we will fight to ensure that all decisions relating to South Africa’s nuclear power programme are made in an open and transparent manner and in consultation with the Auditor General and Treasury‚” Mackay stated.
“With the South African economy in crisis‚ we cannot allow a deal that places the already strained fiscus at further risk‚” he added.
Government confirms next phase of nuclear procurement process stalled indefinitely‚ says DA
The Democratic Alliance has welcomed confirmation from the government that the next phase of its nuclear procurement process has been stalled indefinitely‚ which it hopes is the first step towards its outright cancellation.
DA spokesman on energy Gordon Mackay said this had been confirmed by Minister of Energy Tina Joemat-Pettersson in the Energy Portfolio Committee on Wednesday morning.
“The Minister’s admission came in response to a question I posed in committee relating to the Request for Proposal (RFP) that was scheduled to be issued on 1 April‚” Mackay said.
“The Democratic Alliance (DA)‚ which has been calling for the nuclear programme to be abandoned from the outset‚ welcomes this move as the first step toward its outright cancellation‚” he added.
He said Joemat-Pettersson informed the committee that the April 1 deadline was not met and that no new date for the issuing of the RFP had been set‚ signalling that the procurement process was now in limbo.
“The follows my letter to the Minister last week in which I asked her to suspend the process in the light of a number of procedural irregularities. The ANC government simply cannot proceed with a nuclear procurement process that is not open‚ transparent and free from corruption.”
Mackay said the DA had staunchly opposed the nuke deal since it was first revealed that the South African government‚ under the direct leadership of President Jacob Zuma‚ had signed an agreement with the Russian state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom.
“This agreement was entered into without the correct process being followed and raised serious questions relating to potential corruption given the personal involvement of the President. Further questions were raised after the purchase of Shiva Uranium by the Guptas‚ suggesting that the nuclear deal is a project of state capture for the personal benefit of a connected few and opens the door for corruption of the highest order.
“While today’s admission is a victory for the people of South Africa who cannot afford to bear the burden of an ill-advised and unaffordable nuclear programme‚ the DA will not rest until the project has been abandoned outright.
“In the interim we will fight to ensure that all decisions relating to South Africa’s nuclear power programme are made in an open and transparent manner and in consultation with the Auditor General and Treasury‚” Mackay stated.
“With the South African economy in crisis‚ we cannot allow a deal that places the already strained fiscus at further risk‚” he added.
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