"The problems that obviously beset the DMR are now a priority that need to be urgently addressed", says Phillip Dexter, COPE spokesperson on Mineral Resources.
"A number of key issues highlight the extent of the rot that has taken hold at the Department under the administration of President Jacob Zuma; the awarding of mining rights to Imperial Crown Trading, the sale of Imperial Crown Trading to ArcelorMittal and the related BEE deal, and the appearance of the usual suspects on the boards who benefit from these decisions, including Zuma's son this time and the decision around the related mineral rights for Lonmin in its mining operations.
Dexter alluded to malfeasance deeply rooted in the Department. "For this proposed BEE deal to reach this stage under the cover of night, someone from inside the department must have tipped off Imperial Crown Trading about the mining rights, clearing the way for this deal to be on the cards".
"The same people involved in the Imperial Crown Trading mining rights have now hit the jackpot on the proposed BEE deal with ArcelorMittal.
This is what gives BEE a bad name. Currently the BEE policy and legislation only benefits a select few, recently many of whom carry the same name as the President of the country. This is no co-incidence."
"While COPE agrees with the objectives of BEE and BBBEE, the way it is being implemented by the government is untenable. Within the parameters of the current framework, proximity to power is more important than ability. How many more 'Sishen-gates' do we need before the ANC realize that the legislation in its current form undermines the spirit in which it was written?"