Minister authorises sale of SAPPI assets

LOBAMBA —   Minister of Commerce Industry and Trade Jabulile Mashwama has been accused of writing a letter authorising the disposal of Sappi assets.

Following such revelations in Parliament yesterday, MPs have since resolved that Mashwama withdraw the letter she allegedly wrote to Sappi Southern Africa instructing them to go on with the disposal of assets at the recently shut down Sappi Usutu. She was instructed to do this within 24 hours.

Mashwama is said to have written a letter dated July 9, 2010 where she gave a go ahead for the company to continue to sell property including houses. Raising the motion on a point of privilege was acting Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee Mtsambama MP Bheki Mkhonta who said the letter was hindering their assignment as a portfolio committee.

The portfolio committee was tasked by Parliament to look at what had delayed the selling of Sappi or the disposal of its assets because there were some people including Swazis who were interested in buying some of the assets if not the company.
Mkhonta said given the nature of the letter one would find that everything had been disposed of and that at the end there would be nothing to buy because Sappi Southern Africa could have disposed of all the assets. Mkhonta said the minister should withdraw the letter so that the committee could finish its job.

However, some of the Cabinet ministers did not agree with this motion including Agriculture minister Clement Dlamini, Foreign Affairs minister Lutfo Dlamini and Natural Resources minister Princess Tsandzile and Public Works and Transport minister Ntuthuko Dlamini. Dlamini (Clement) said just because the portfolio committee was working on the matter did not mean that government should stop taking whatever action that it saw necessary.

However, Ludzeludze MP Nonhlanhla Dlamini supported Mkhonta and said the selling of the assets should stop. Dlamini further alleged that there were rumours that some ministers perhaps may have already bought some houses there.
Mkhonta said if the sale of the assets was allowed to continue that would obviously mean that Sappi would never reopen again as a company in Swaziland.

Mkhonta was asked by Foreign Affairs minister how a letter that was supposed to have been a private communication between government and a private company had reached him. He said perhaps the letter was obtained illegally.

Mkhonta said the letter came to the attention of the portfolio committee from interested parties in the matter.
Dlamini (Lutfo) said Mkhonta could not just table a letter he had received from a third party and said it would only have been proper if the said letter had been brought to the committee by either Sappi or the alleged author, government.

He said they could not just publish the document between government and a private company.
Princess Tsandzile said a letter or communication between government and a private company could only be made public after 25 years. However, Deputy Speaker Esther Dlamini advised Mkhonta not to table the letter in Parliament yesterday, but to include it in their report. Again the Foreign Affairs  minister said the committee should have called the minister if they now wanted to amend their terms of reference to stop the disposal of assets.  
Dlamini said this matter would disturb the ongoing negotiations.
However, the MPs resolved that the minister withdraw the letter within 24 hours. 

‘...it can’t happen in 24 hours’

LOBAMBA — Pastor Lindiwe Dlamini, the acting minister of Commerce Industry and Trade said she could not withdraw the letter as this needed the substantive minister.

Dlamini who is the minister of Housing and Urban Development said she did not want her colleague Jabulile Mashwama to find that she had taken such drastic decisions.

However, the Deputy Speaker and some other MPs wondered why the acting minister had not stood up to debate the matter before a resolution was made.
“The acting minister had all the time to stand up but did not can we continue with other business,” said Ntfonjeni MP Henry Dlamini.

Dlamini (Lindiwe) said Mashwama was away on other national duties.
The members of the commerce portfolio committee include Joseph Madonsela, Princess Ncengencenge, Mduduzi Mabuza, Thandi Nxumalo and Musa Kunene.   

Comments

Yet another example of vultures picking over the remains of a once thriving company, a company brought down by the greed, averice of a bunch of people who never produced anything in their lives but had control over the companies work permits. I suggest that a Swaziland government task force be raised to perform a feasability study to ascertain whether the company can be resurrected by contacting old Sappi managers (retired or not) and ask them if they would be prepared to come an see what could be saved from the company initially. An example being making woodchips for sale to other Sappi divisions (the woodyard is fairly new) which would then utilise the forest and make a start on resurection of the mill.
July 27, 2010, 11:39 am, Greg Chapman (sdc@swaziweb.co.sz)

As an Engineer. My first thoughts - while reading this article, were that I hope that somebody has the insight to see the national potential of utilizing the steam boilers to produce electricity within Swaziland. Yes it can be done - what a blessing for Swaziland this would be !!!!! Please give it a very thorough thought, before disposing of such VALUABLE ENGINEERING ASSETS !!!
July 27, 2010, 11:48 am, Loucas Kometas (metfocus@metfocus.co.za)

Clement Dlamini...... Lutfo Dlamini.......Princess Tsandzile..... Ntuthuko Dlamini.....I am embarking on a fact finding mission to ascertain WHY these four do not want the sale to go on. Anybody with useful information can contact me at jbpost1973@yahoo.com....
July 27, 2010, 3:04 pm, Keep these names (keepo@yahoo.com)