Question NW226 to the Minister of Employment and Labour
18 April 2023 - NW226
Denner, Ms H to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
(1) Whether, with reference to the alleged planned R5 billion investment in Thuja Capital Fund and his subsequent instruction to delay the investment pending an investigation, he has been informed that a certain office bearer (name and details furnished) has declared his interest in the fund during the process of adjudication of the specified investment or elsewhere; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether he has found that involvement of the specified person constitutes a gross conflict of interest; if not, why not; if so, what further steps does he intend to take in this regard; (3) (a) what is the current status of the investigation into the alleged investment with Thuja Capital Fund, (b) who is conducting the investigation and (c) on what date (i) is it envisaged that the investigation will be completed and (ii) will the report be presented to the Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour?
Reply:
In response to question (1) and (2) above I want to advise Honourable Denner that the process that she is referring to in question (3) will assist my office in establishing whether:
(1) The certain individual referred to declared his/her interest in the Fund or anywhere else, and
(2) The involvement of the specified person constitutes a gross conflict of interest or not.
(3) (a) An appointment process for a qualified institution to undertake the process is on its final stages.
(b) I will know once the appointment process has been finalized.
(c) I cannot determine the finalization date at this point, however I want the process to be finalized before end of May 2023.
(i) Yes, it is envisaged that the process will be completed, and
(ii) Yes, I will present the report to the Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour.