Minister must play open cards about fire at Waterkloof

24 January 2022

The Minister of Defence, Thandi Modise, must play open cards with the public regarding the cause of the fire that broke out at the Waterkloof Air Force Base's fuel depot.

If the fire ignited spontaneously, it means that certain safety measures were not in place or adhered to. These measures are there to prevent spontaneous fires, particularly at a depot of highly flammable jet fuel.

If the fire did not ignite spontaneously, then it surely points to sabotage – despite any denials in this regard – and one cannot help but wonder what is going on in South Africa, especially after Parliament was recently left in ruins by a fire as well. And in that case, the necessary safety measures were clearly not in place.

Both cases raise questions about security, particularly with regard to access control and maintenance.  The failure to address these issues smells of sabotage.

A spontaneous fire at Waterkloof must, therefore, be investigated with the same thoroughness as sabotage seeing as a fire cannot ignite by itself if all the relevant safety measures are in place.

The FF Plus will pose questions regarding the matter in Parliament to gain more clarity about the cause of the fire.

Issued by Pieter Groenewald, FF Plus leader, 24 January 2022