Teflon Tina must go
Reports in the media today that the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Tina Joemat-Pettersson, is under investigation by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) and the Directorate for Priority Crimes (Hawks) for allegedly taking a kickback for arranging the sale of a farm is further proof that she is not fit to hold public office (see Sunday Times report).
According to the Sunday Times, when she was an MEC in the Northern Cape, Joemat-Pettersson received payment of R100 000 as a reward for her efforts in facilitating the purchase of a farm. According to the lawyer who helped facilitate the deal, the money was paid directly into her personal bank account.
Joemat-Pettersson is the ultimate Teflon Minister, she has hurtled from scandal to scandal without any real castigation. It is time for President Zuma to do the right thing and relieve her of her duties.
Since 2009, Joemat-Petterson has been involved in numerous scandals:
Two years ago, after Public Protector Thuli Madonsela found her guilty of having misused state funds in her trip to Sweden with her family; President Jacob Zuma did nothing except what he claims was "reprimand" her. This was nothing but a slap on the wrist.
The Minister was also responsible and has conceded to the fact that she funded the Black Association of the Wine and Spirit Industry (BAWSI), the organisation that fuelled the violent farmworker protests in the Western Cape last year.
During the 2010 Rift Valley out breaks, the Minister did nothing to alleviate the situation of animal health and did not respond to the pleas of the farming community for assistance. Since then, two key reports revealing the state of animal health have been kept from the public eye. Once again, the Minister has got off scot-free without any consequences.
Minister Joemat- Pettersson has failed to manage the very crucial fleet needed for research in the fishing industry. Not only did she award the tender to Smit Amandla, which was later withdrawn after being found to be illegally awarded, but she has reissued the contract to a former Smit Amandla partner, Nautic Africa, which was known as KND at the time. Nothing has been done to probe yet another controversial decision by the Minister.
Recently, Minister Joemat-Pettersson's Department spent R1.6 million on her budget vote debate party. The Department cannot ill-afford to spend such an exorbitant amount on a party while poor farming communities continue to struggle to make ends meet.
Joemat-Petterson has continually flouted several PFMA procedures, made reckless spending decisions involving state funds, and not faced any consequences for her actions apart from a mere slap on the wrist. This cannot be allowed to continue.
If President Zuma is serious about the plight of the farming and fishing communities, and industry, he needs to show it by taking a firm stance against the Minister.
Statement issued by Annette Steyn MP, DA Shadow Minister of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries, June 16 2013
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