Questions and Replies

Reply:

I have already briefed the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans on the implementation plan for milestone 1 of the Defence Review on the 26th November 2015.

I have also undertaken to provide regular briefings to the Committee on the progress made at each stage of the implementation plan. I have similarly recently met with the Defence Service Commission and the Military Ombud.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 12 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

This question must be redirected to the Minister in the Presidency responsible for Performance, Monitoring, Evaluation and Administration. In addition the Minister is the current Chairperson of the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC)

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

(1) (a) Advertisements have been placed and short listing is underway.

(b) VACANCY RATE AS AT 01 APRIL 2014 TO DATE

SN	POST TITLE	SALARY LEVEL	TOTAL COST
1	Personnel Officers x 2	5	R 264, 798
2	Senior personnel Officers x 3	6	R 476, 955
3	Admin Assistants x 3	7	R 588, 834
4	Admin Officer x 1	8	R 243, 747
5	Assistant Director x 1	10	R 361, 659
6	Deputy Director x 1	12	R 674, 979
7	Director x 1	13	R 864, 177
8	Chief Director x 2	14	R 2, 085, 000
9	DDG x 2	15	R 2, 535, 612
10	DG x 1	16	R 1, 656, 618
GRAND TOTAL	R 9, 752,379

(c) The Department of Military Veterans (DMV) in collaboration with the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) developed its Service Delivery Model (SDM) which is fundamental to the design of the organogram. Discussions are underway to fine tune the first draft of the organogram.

 

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

(1) A process of consultation with role players is underway.

(2) Depending on the outcome of the consultations, the department proposes to prioritise the former non-statutory force members who did not qualify for Special Pensions from 1996 and destitute World War military veterans in the provisioning of pension.

(a) In instances where the value of the Special Pensions is lower than the value of the military pension’s value, top-up is proposed.

(b) and (c) Special Pensions does not pay a standardized pension amount to the beneficiaries but utilizes a formula which considers the age of the beneficiary and the years spent in service.

(3) Whilst there are on-going consultations, the view of the Department is that any pension granted to Military Veterans may be offset against other benefits received from the State, such as the Special Pensions.

(4) During the 2014-15 financial periods, the department made contingency provisions to provide pension to 500 Military Veterans at an estimated cost of approximately R23 million.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

(1) The reason why the target was not achieved is because the Department relies on the military veterans to approach the department with requests to update their records. It is assumed that those Military Veterans who are not updating their records, their personal details have not changed.

(2) As per the Act the listing of Military Veterans in the National Military Veterans database is a permanent function which is not expected to end as it caters for the transition of members of the defence force who exit service.

(3) The 21 322 updated files completed was not broken down as per former force, at the time of reporting, due to the nature of our system we may not be able to go back at the end of the reporting period to track the composition of the batch. With the current improvements on the system, we will make sure such a break-down is provided in future.

 

 

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

Both Department’s Accounting Officers and Senior Officials responsible for housing portfolio for Military Veterans met to reconcile housing targets over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and agreed on delivering 2000 houses which is a realistic figure.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

1. (a) During the 2014-15 financial periods the Department had planned to build 1000 houses for the benefit of Military Veterans through its partnership with the Department of Human Settlements.

(b) The R31.9 million top-up transfer to the Department of Human Settlement was in respect of the planned construction of 400 houses.

2. The Department of Human Settlements plans as agreed with the Department was for the building of 400 houses in the following provinces:

• Kwa-Zulu Natal
• Eastern Cape
• Free State and
• Mpumalanga3. 

3. Questions 3-5 must be redirected to the Department of Human Settlements as they have the constitutional mandate to address housing issues in the Republic of South Africa.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

(a) The Department of Military Veterans still has a number of medals in stock to be awarded to members of the non-statutory force of uMkhonto we Sizwe for whom the first set of medals were designed and cast. At present the Department of Military Veterans has gone into negotiations with the former APLA for approval of designs of medals for their organisation.

(b) There have been no medal parades since 2012 to honour any military

Veterans.

(i) No medal parades were held nor planned to honour Statutory Forces.

(ii) The Department held three medal parades to award medals to uMkhonto we Sizwe non-statutory force.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 11 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

a) Yes, Annual financial statements of the Special Defence Account (SDA) were always tabled with the Annual report of the Department of Defence as required by the Appropriations Act, and the last SDA Annual financial statements for the 2014/15 financial year were tabled in Parliament on 29 September 2015 with the tabling of the annual report of the Department of Defence.

b) The next Annual financial statement of the SDA will be for the financial year 2015/16, and the tabling thereof will be done with the tabling of the Annual Report after the financial statements have been completed and audited, which is usually around September/October each year

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 12 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

I do not engage suppliers. Armscor continually interacts with all suppliers on a range of projects with an aim to ensure that suppliers honour their contractual obligations at all times.

.

Reply:

Due to the voluminous nature of the information requested, I would recommend that the member approaches the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and request to have this information tabled in a meeting of the Portfolio Committee in one of their sessions in 2016

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The SANDF is not aware of any Military Shop in Pretoria that sells military medals. The SANDF remains the custodian of all the South African military medals.

 

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The Department of Defence was not involved in the travel arrangements for the diplomatic visit to the Republic of Cuba by the Deputy President, Mr C Ramaphosa, and his entourage during the month of October 2015.

Please refer your question to the Presidency.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information can be processed through the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans in the new year, as the beneficiaries names are considered confidential.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

Due to the voluminous nature of the information requested, I would recommend that the member approaches the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and request to have this information tabled in a meeting of the Portfolio Committee in one of their sessions in 2016

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

Due to the voluminous nature of the information requested, I would recommend that the member approaches the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and request to have this information tabled in a meeting of the Portfolio Committee in one of their sessions in 2016

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information can be processed through the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans in the new year, as the beneficiaries names are considered confidential.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information can be processed through the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans in the new year, as the beneficiaries names are considered confidential.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

Due to the voluminous nature of the information requested, I would recommend that the member approaches the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and request to have this information tabled in a meeting of the Portfolio Committee in one of their sessions in 2016

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information can be processed through the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans in the new year, as the beneficiaries names are considered confidential.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

Due to the voluminous nature of the information requested, I would recommend that the member approaches the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans and request to have this information tabled in a meeting of the Portfolio Committee in one of their sessions in 2016.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information can be processed through the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans in the new year, as the beneficiaries names are considered confidential.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

1. I am not going to provide security sensitive information about the movement of the President
2. No

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

1. (a) On 13 October 2015, I made the following appointments: Statutory Directors (Director Military Judges, Directory Military Prosecutions, Director Military Defence Counsel and Director Military Judicial Reviews); Reserve Force Military Judges (2 Senior Military Judges and 4 Military Judges).

(b) Regular Force Military Judges will be appointed as soon as their secret security clearances are in place.

(2) (a) As indicated above, I have appointed Statutory Directors and Reserve Force Military Judges to deal with cases in the military justice system.

(b) Once vetting is completed of Regular Force Military Judges these appointments will further alleviate pressure on the system.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

1. Yes
2. (a)(i) The process underway has been initiated by Armscor to test the market for information through the issuance of RFI (Request for Information).

At this stage Armscor has only done the RFI (Request for Information), depending on the findings from the RFI, the process can stop or be moved to the next step which will be a request for Offer (RFO).

(ii) Same as previous answer.

(b)(i) There is no specific amount allocated to the project, the request for information will assist in terms of the budget.

(ii) As above.

(c) This will dependent on whether we go ahead with the project in the first place. So far no such decision has been made.

3. The outcome of the findings will provide guidance on the way forward.

4. No statement will be made

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 07 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The information required is classified and the response to the above questions can be provided in a closed session of the Joint Standing Committee on Defence.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

This matter is currently the subject of litigation between the Department and the company concerned and as such any comments at this stage are likely to prejudice the Department’s case.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

This matter is currently the subject of litigation between the Department and the company concerned and as such any comments at this stage are likely to prejudice the Department’s case.

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 08 DECEMBER 2015

Reply:

The integration process under the Termination of Integration Intake Act of 2001 terminated on 31 March 2002.

Reply:

(1) I cannot reply to the question as the information asked is by nature sensitive as it pertains to the movement of the Deputy President. I will provide the information in a closed briefing of the Joint Standing Committee on Defence when it is duly convened.

Reply:

(1) I cannot reply to the question as the information asked is by nature sensitive as it pertains to the movement of the State President. I will provide the information in a closed briefing of the Joint Standing Committee on Defence when it is duly convened.

Reply:

(1) Nothing procured yet but processes are in place for additional VVIP aircraft procurement.

(2) No

Reply:

As of 1 October 2015 I have appointed a turnaround team at the Department of Military Veterans to focus on all the short comings of this Department and amongst others they will focus on the cleaning up of the database through verification.

Reply:

The SAAF does not target any specific institution but people who have an interest in aviation.

Reply:

Stolen over the period 2013/14: 5 weapons

Lost over the period 2013/14: 3 weapons

Stolen over the period 2014/15: 8 weapons

Lost over the period 2014/15: 2 weapons

Total of 18 weapons were reported to Military Police Division:

(i) 8 x Z88 9 mm pistol

(ii) 1 x Star 9mm pistol

(iii) 1 x Baretta 9 mm pistol

(iv) 2 x 303 hunting rifle

(v) 6 x R4 rifles

(2) Ammunition lost or stolen over period 2013/14: 32 956 rounds

Ammunition lost or stolen over period 2014/15: 19 rounds

Types of ammunition: 9 mm sharp point; 5.56 mm and R4 rifle ammunition

(3) 12 people have been charged

(i) 1 x 9mm Z88 pistol stolen from Northern Military Police Region Head Quarters Duty room on 23/11/14.

• Weapon was recovered by Special Investigation Branch two weeks after it was stolen. Suspect was arrested and charged and sentenced to five years imprisonment.

(ii) 1 x 9mm Z88 pistol with 30 rounds of ammunition was stolen on 28/08/13:

• Suspect was charged and disciplinary action instituted. Outcome of criminal prosecution still awaited.

(iii) 1 x Z88 9 mm pistol lost on 16/12/13

• Military Police investigating the case

(iv) 1 x R4 rifle without ammunition was stolen on 08/11/13

• Weapon was recovered but the docket is still at LEGSATO for a decision

(v) 3 x R4 rifles, 1 x 9mm Star pistol and 1 x 9 mm Z88 pistol without ammunition was stolen on 11/06/14

• The case is at LEGSATO for a decision

(vi) 1 x R4 rifle lost on 31/5/14

• Suspect was found guilty and sentenced by Court of Military Judge

(vii) 2 x 3030 rifles were stolen on 11/01/14

• The docket is still under investigation and the member was declared unfit to possess a firearm

(viii) 1 x 9mm Z88 pistol was lost on 26/07/13

• Suspect found guilty and sentenced to R1500 fine and 180 days detention suspended for 3 years

(ix) 5 x 9mm rounds of ammunition was stolen and found on 30/10/14

• Suspect has already been charged and case is proceeding to trial

(x) 1 x Baretta pistol lost on 16/9/13

• Case still under investigation

(xi) 32400 x R4 sharp point ammunition stolen on 13/04/13

• 5 suspects arrested and the trial is ongoing in Lenasia Magistrate Court

(xii) 3 x 9mm Z88 pistols without ammunition stolen on 18/07/14

• Case is still under investigation

(xiii) 1 x R4 rifle lost on 23/01/15

• Case is still under investigation

(xiv) 556 x 45 mm blank ammunition stolen on 01/03/14

• Case docket sent to LEGSATO for a decision

(xv) 14 x cartridges box LMG belt links, Bomb stand attachments and bay stripping spring bellets stolen on 12/02/15

• Suspects have been charged and case still under investigation

Reply:

Integration has long been closed.

Reply:

1 (a) Co-operatives Training Programme and Skills Development Training Programme determined by the needs of individual military veteran.

(b) Co-operatives Training Programme - Both accredited by the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) provided by accredited training providers from the Agency.

(c) Co-operatives Training Programme - Three hundred and sixty eight (368)

Skills development - 698

(d) None at the moment for Co-operatives Training Programme

Skills Development - Public and private institution and the maximum cost permitted to pay per student is R40 000.00

2. An audit was conducted on the type of businesses that military veterans own, what they would like to start and the support required to start and grow their businesses.

In terms of Skills Development no audit has been conducted because of the following reason; each military veteran advice the department on their areas which they need intervention on.

3. (a) and (b)

During the DMV roadshows, Military Veterans who attended the sessions in all Provinces were captured on attendance registers, questionnaires were distributed according to Military Veteran’s interest and a survey was conducted. The Military Veterans who showed interest in forming co-operatives were invited for this programme. The second group of Military Veterans was the ones who completed the “Aspiring” questionnaire and indicated interest in starting any form of business. The third group that was approached were the Military Veterans with informal businesses (Informal traders) and the last group was the ones with registered businesses but have not started operating and did not know how to get their businesses off the ground. A phoning exercise was embarked upon to establish whether the above-mentioned groups would like to form co-operatives. All these groups were then combined together to benefit in the Co-operatives Training Programme.

Not applicable to Skills Development.

Reply:

Members of the Appeals Board have been appointed on a part-time basis, as of 1 June 2015, for a period of five years.

Members of the Appeal Board not in the full-time service of the State shall receive remuneration in accordance with the scales provided for in Category B1of the Service Benefit Packages for Office-bearers of certain statutory and other institutions.

The Appeal Board is composed of five members and they are Mr. M. Msimang, who is the chairperson; Adv. C.O. Morolo; Mr. F. Hartzenberg; Adv. Fhedzisani and Ms Mkwanazi.

Reply:

 

1. Members of the Advisory Council have been appointed as of 1 October 2015 for a period of five years.
2. The functions of the Council are set out in section 10 of the Military Veterans Act, 2011. Members of the Council serve part time and those not in the full time employment of the State receive an hourly remuneration rate set by National Treasury for Boards.
3. and (4)

Name	Current Occupation
Mr Andile Apleni	Mkmva
Mr Kabelo Bokala	Aznla
Mr Tembile Magingxa	Sanmva
Ms P.M. Kubu	Mkmva
Mr Mbulelo Fihla	Aplamva
Mr Obbey Mabena	Mkmva
Ms Dudu Phama	Aplamva
Mr Mzwandile Vena	Private Business
Ms Ntsikelelo Khwezi	Mkmva
Mr Snuki Zikalala	Cosatu
Mr Miki Xayiya	Private Business
Ms Thandi Ndlovu-Molokwane	Private Business
Ms Vuyiswa Lieta	Mkmva
Mr Alex Mahapa	Dpsa

Reply:

This matter is the subject of ongoing litigation at present.

Reply:

1. (a) Pension, military pension, leave credits, Group Life Insurance Scheme; Injury on Duty (Rule 15)

(b)Pension, military pension, leave credits, injury on duty (Rule 15)

2. (a) Pension benefit: paid to the Master of the High Court and beneficiaries in June 2012 (details of payment not kept by DOD).

(b) Military pension – spouse is receiving it since November 2011

(c) Leave credits – set off against member’s outstanding departmental debt

(d) Group life insurance scheme – benefit paid on 12 January 2012

(e) Injury on duty – monthly amount paid since July 2014 as well as gratuity to spouse

(3) (a) Pension benefit: Pension benefit paid in various installments over the period October 2009 and August 2011. Gratuity and monthly pension payable.

(b) Military pension – being paid to beneficiaries since September 2009

(c) Leave credits - set off against member’s outstanding departmental debt

(d) Injury on duty – Spouse was paid gratuity and is receiving monthly pension since November 2014

Reply:

Power outages at Camden Military Base experienced during the month of August have not been in line with load shedding. The power outages at Camden Military Base are attributed to the following: a) electrical copper cable theft and b) illegal electricity connections.

Reply:

 

1. Armscor is not aware of an indemnity provided to Denel by Government. The contract between Armscor and Airbus was cancelled and Airbus duly refunded Armscor its advanced payments accordingly and therefore no obligations on the part of Armscor arose as a consequence of the cancellation. Armscor is not aware of Denel and Government’s obligations.
2. Armscor is not aware of the claims made by Denel and the amount paid for the claims. The query should be referred to Denel.
3. Armscor is not aware of whether an oversight has taken place in respect to Denel’s claims. The question should be referred to Denel.

Reply:

 

1. Yes

(a)(i) and (ii) 93 Cuban nationals form part of a skills exchange programme not a contract of employment

(b) and (c) Transport: 57 members working on maintenance, repair and preservation of military vehicles; Airforce: 18 engineers responsible for technical assistance on systems of combat aircrafts, transport aircrafts and helicopters; Military health services: 7 specialists advising on the improvement of military medical professional training.

(d) This is not a contract of employment but an exchange of professional and technical skills.

(e) For the 2015/16 financial year a total of R150 million has been budgeted for this contract.

Reply:

 

1. A contract for the provision of professional and technical services was signed on 18 August 2014 and runs until March 2016. It must be categorically stated that this is not a contract for “certain trades or professions to find work in South Africa”, but is a skills exchange programme over a specific time period.
2. The agreement identifies three areas of professional and technical services involving 93 Cuban specialists. Transport: 57 members working on maintenance, repair and preservation of military vehicles; Airforce: 18 engineers responsible for technical assistance on systems of combat aircrafts, transport aircrafts and helicopters; Military health services: 7 specialists advising on the improvement of military medical professional training.
3. It was not necessary to undergo such verification given that these contracts are focused on skills exchange and not employment.

I will not make a statement on the matter.

Reply:

I responded to this question during the debate on the Adjustments Appropriation Bill of 2014, held on 20 November 2014, and I refer you to the Hansard and my detailed response to this question as captured therein.

Reply:

The Secretary of Defence cooperated with the Office of the Auditor General in relation to this matter.

Reply:

This matter is the subject of ongoing litigation at present and therefore I will not make a statement on the matter at this stage.

Reply:

This disciplinary case has been finalized and the employee has been dismissed following the outcome of the disciplinary hearing.

Reply:

Colonel Nhlanhla Dube left the employment of the South African Air Force in 2013, thus rendering the remainder of the question irrelevant.