Africa-Press – South-Africa. If there was indeed nothing – or “f***l”, as Defence Minister Thandi Modise put it – loaded onto the Lady R, why is the cargo manifest being kept secret?
This is the question of DA MP Kobus Marais, who on Tuesday, during the Department of Defence’s budget vote speech, challenged Modise to reveal the cargo manifest of the Russian civilian vessel which was allowed to dock at the Simon’s Town naval base in December.
Instead, Modise responded: “I will reiterate what I said: We put f***l on that ship. Nothing.”
Yet, ANC MP Thabo Mmutle insisted that the Lady R’s cargo manifest was “classified” and that its docking was related to a military operation.
“As the DA, you seem to be obsessed with Lady R. And it’s a sign of desperation. You know that some operations of the defence force are classified. Why should you expect them to divulge those classified information to the public? You want them to release the cargo manifest that you know very well is classified,” Mmutle said.
The DA raised an objection to Modise’s use of the word “f***l” during a parliamentary sitting, but presiding officer, ANC MP Supra Mahumapelo, ruled that it was acceptable. In 2018, EFF MP Nazier Paulsen was immediately ordered to withdraw the word when he used it in a budget vote debate.
In a statement on Wednesday, Marais “strongly condemned” Modise’s remark.
He said:
“Will she repeat this utterance when she is brought before the commission of inquiry, which admittedly has yet to materialise?”
He said Tuesday’s debate was an opportunity for Modise to “dispel the rumours and allegations” made by American ambassador Reuben Brigety, when he, at a press conference two weeks ago, said the US was convinced that South Africa had supplied armaments to the Russian army, despite its self-described “neutral” and “non-aligned” stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“However, once again, she failed to do so. We demand that the minister reveals the manifest of the cargo. Until she does not, we will see it as an admission that South Africa indeed supplied arms and or ammunition to Russia.”
He said Modise’s refusal to clear the air “raises serious concerns about the motives behind this secrecy”.
‘We stand by peaceful means’
“If Minister Modise genuinely does not possess knowledge of the cargo’s content, she has lost control over the military and should resign. A Minister of Defence who lacks awareness of what is being transported into a naval base and loaded on a vessel under her jurisdiction poses a grave security risk to our nation. We cannot afford such breaches in our security apparatus,” Marais said.
In the diplomatic fallout over Brigety’s announcement and South Africa’s so-called “neutral” and “non-aligned” stance being openly questioned, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, had agreed to receive a peace mission led by six African heads of state to end the war between the two countries.
Subsequently, a delegation from Ramaphosa, including Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and Ramaphosa’s advisor Bejani Chauke, went to Moscow to prepare for this peace mission by African leaders, expected to take place in June.
Mahumapelo, in his capacity as chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation, said: “We welcome the African Peace Plan Initiative. We support it because it is in line with the foreign policy position, which South Africa has been articulating since the start of the conflict.”
“We remain concerned about the contribution of the conflict to Africa’s increasing food insecurity, with the rising costs of grain and fertiliser. We are greatly encouraged by the manner in which the two leaders from Russia and Ukraine have welcomed the African initiative, and their willingness to receive the African heads of state in both Moscow and Kiev.
“We stand by peaceful means to end conflicts and we believe that since the Secretary-General of the United Nations has also endorsed this initiative, it will bear fruit and bring the parties in the conflict closer to peaceful coexistence.”
DA MP Emma Powell, who serves on the committee, said Mahumapelo was speaking for himself, and not for the multiparty committee.
‘The diplomatic imbalance is stark’
“If Honourable Mahumapelo was genuinely worried about Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine contributing to rising food costs in Africa, he would acknowledge the significant risks that the ANC’s dalliance with Putin poses to the sustainability of South Africa’s largest trade partnerships, such as AGOA,” she said.
“Instead, the ANC has consistently snubbed Ukraine whilst cosying up to the Kremlin, and in doing so, have put 100 000 jobs and billions of rands worth of trade with the West on the line. This despite Russia accounting for roughly 0.3% of South Africa’s trade ties.”
She said Ntshavheni’s visit to the Kremlin had followed hot on the heels of army chief Lawrence Mbatha’s visit last week, and was the third high-level delegation That South Africa had sent to Russia this year.
“Conversely, the Minister of International Relations found an hour in her diary to meet with her Ukrainian ministerial counterpart during a trip to Portugal last week.
“The diplomatic imbalance is stark. South Africa cannot participate in military combat training programmes with Russia whilst positioning the nation as non-aligned mediator to the conflict – diplomacy simply does not work that way,” said Powell.
She said she was sure that Zelensky was looking forward to welcoming Ramaphosa as part of the African Peace Mission, to educate him on the Zelensky Peace Plan.
Meanwhile, EFF leader Julius Malema told the BBC he would align with Russia and supply them with weapons, because they were in a “war with imperialism”.
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