The Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and the Joint Standing Committee on Defence will this weekend, 27-30 November visit land borders, 4 Vehicle Reserve Park, Air Force Base Waterkloof and 1 Military Hospital.
As part of the committees’ oversight responsibility, the visit’s main intention is to assess challenges faced by the South African National Defence Force in delivering on its mandate, the impact and progress in resolving some of the concerns raised by defence committees of the 5th Parliament, and also to assess the rollout of measures to safeguard the borderline as per the mandate of Operation Corona.
Successive defence committees have called for additional funding to bolster the capacity of deployment as part of Operation Corona to the ideal 22 sub-units’ deployment to safeguard the borderline. While the R225 million additional allocation to the Department of Defence to procure equipment and technology to support military units deployed is welcomed, the committees remain aware that the challenge of porous borders remains a huge concern. The R225 million will go a long way in implementing a recommendation to utilise technology as a force multiplier in safeguarding our borders. The visit will appraise the committee with the plans to spend the additional allocation as well as to discuss solutions to challenges faced by soldiers deployed on the borderline.
In line with this, the committees will visit the Beitbridge, Komatipoort and Kosi Bay deployment areas. As part of the visit, the committee will receive presentations on strategies to address the threat of corruption along our borderline.
The delays in completion of the refurbishment of 1 Military has been raised as a matter of concern by successive defence committees since the Repair and Maintenance Project commenced in 2006. The visit is aimed at assessing progress in concluding the refurbishment project, as well as assessment of progress in the appointment of specialised medical professionals and procurement of specialised medical equipment.
The visit to 4 Vehicle Reserve Park, the committees will visit to assess the impact and progress of Ops Thusano in repairing vehicles at the facility and ensure the operability of vehicle capability that need to be repaired at the facility. Operation Thusano comprises the deployment of Cuban technicians to various SANDF (South African National Defence Force) bases around the country. The main aim of Project Thusano is to create a sustainable system of transport for the SANDF
At the centre of this visit is to ensure that the SANDF functions at its optimal in delivering its mandate.
The programme for the oversight visit: https://tinyurl.com/yyhoxazz
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact the Committees’ Media Officer:
Name: Malatswa Molepo (Mr)
Parliamentary Communication Services
Tel: 021 403 8438
Cell: 081 512 7920
E-mail: mmolepo@parliament.gov.za
