Question NW1088 to the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
26 June 2018 - NW1088
Mashabela, Ms N to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
What (a) number of consulting firms or companies are currently contracted by (i) her department and (ii) the entities reporting to her and (b)(i) is the name of each consultant, (ii) are the relevant details of the service provided in each case and (iii) is the (aa) start date, (bb) time period, (cc) monetary value in Rands of each contract and (dd) name and position of each individual who signed off on each contract?
Reply:
(a) The Department has advised me that it has contracts with twenty two (22) companies and our entity, the African Renaissance Fund, none.
(b) I wish to encourage the Honourable Member to refer this matter to the Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation in order obtain the details we are not authorised to give in replies to parliamentary questions.
The Honourable Member would recall that there is an established practise applicable to parliamentary questions contained in the document titled, “Guide to Parliamentary Questions in the National Assembly. The document referred to prohibits Members of Parliament, including the Executive, from divulging names of persons, bodies when asking or responding to parliamentary questions. It specifically states the following:
“Questions are to be framed as concisely as possible. All unnecessary adjectives, references and quotations are omitted. Names of persons, bodies and, for example, newspapers are only used in questions if the facts surrounding the case have been proven. As the mere mention of such names could be construed as publicity for or against them, it should be clear that this practice is highly undesirable. If a question will be unintelligible without mentioning such names, the Departments concerned are notified of the name (-s) and this phrase is used: ".......a certain person (name furnished)”