Africa-Press – South-Africa. President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed former Supreme Court judge Phineas Mojapelo to chair a three-member independent panel tasked with investigating the veracity of allegations related to the docking of Russian vessel, the Lady R, in Simon’s Town in December last year.
In a media statement on Sunday, the Presidency said government seeks to establish the circumstances that led to the docking of the ship, the alleged loading of cargo, and the departure of the Lady R cargo ship from Simon’s Town, during the period of 6-9 December 2022.
“The president has appointed Judge PMD Mojapelo as chairperson, together with [advocate] Leah Gcabashe SC, and former deputy minister of basic education, Enver Surty, as other panel members,” the statement read.
Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said: “The president decided to establish the inquiry because of the seriousness of the allegations, the extent of public interest, and the impact of this matter on South Africa’s international relations.”
Ramaphosa had announced on 11 May 2023 that he would establish an independent inquiry headed by a retired judge after United States Ambassador to SA Reuben Brigety raised concerns by his country that SA had allegedly supplied weapons and ammunition to aid Russia in its invasion of Ukraine.
Brigety said this was a betrayal of the stance of non-alignment that SA had been publicly claiming.
The panel has been tasked with establishing whether there were any persons who were aware of the cargo ship’s arrival and, if any, the contents to be offloaded or loaded, the departure, and destination of the cargo.
Furthermore, the panel will evaluate whether constitutional, legal, or other obligations were complied with in relation to the abovementioned.
According to the Presidency: “The panel’s report will include recommendations on any steps that may need to be taken in light of their findings, or as a result of any breaches that may have occurred.”
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“The panel will report directly to the president and will be supported administratively by personnel in the Presidency assigned to this task by the director-general in the Presidency.”
The panel will finalise its investigation within six weeks of its appointment, and will be expected to submit its report to the president within two weeks of concluding its work.
The Presidency, however, stated that the panel may request an extension of this time frame should it be necessary.
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