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A North West provincial department has contradicted Premier Job Mokgoro’s statement that processes were under way for the donation of wildlife worth more than R100 million to be returned to the state’s possession.
The 2016 game donation made headlines amid reports that some previously advantaged and established rare game breeders – and some politically connected individuals – were beneficiaries.
Described as the “quantum leap donation” by the parliamentary portfolio committee on environmental affairs, the size of the donation and its approval came under scrutiny. Some issues had since been raised by the committee which recommended the reversal of the donation. Mokgoro recently gave the impression that this was under way.
“The provincial government through the relevant agriculture and rural development department had issued a clear directive to the parks board to initiate an engagement with the service provider and the beneficiaries regarding the return of animals from the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Association property to the North West parks board,” said Mokgoro.
The “relevant department”, however, appears not be on the same page as the premier.
The economic development, environment, conservation and tourism department, which recently had the provincial parks board transferred into its custody from the agriculture department, said: “No, there’s no request from the department for the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings to return the animals,” wrote Lufuno Tshikovhi, head of the economic development, environment, conservation and tourism department in a response to City Press. His response was forwarded to City Press by Mokgoro’s spokesperson, Vuyisile Ngesi, to whom the questions were initially sent.
Game donation under microscope
The donation of more than 200 rare wild species – including white rhino, buffalo, nyala and sable – worth more than R100 million was first red-flagged by the Auditor-General.
After being questioned in the provincial legislature, the matter was escalated to the portfolio committee on environmental affairs in Parliament to investigate it.
The committee found that the provincial agricultural department “did not handle the donations of the high-value wildlife animals in accordance with the requirements of the Public Finance Management Act”.
The committee directed the then agriculture MEC, Manketse Tlhape, to “reverse the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings’ donation project with immediate effect and to ensure no further donations”.
The report revealed that the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings comprised four established breeders as well as four broad-based black economic empowerment beneficiaries as well as 40 employees and the two groups own 50% each in company shares.
The committee reported that “it did not make sense for the department to argue that the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings’ donation was done to facilitate transformation when the donation actually benefited the previously advantaged white game farmers”.
It said the donation in question had somehow killed chances of donations from others even if their proposals bore good prospects of success.
“The massive quantum leap donation of high-value wildlife to the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings has effectively prevented the department and hence the [parks board] from donating animals to any new potential beneficiaries, however promising their proposals might be,” the report said.
Meanwhile, City Press previously reported that Mokgoro, who was the North West parks board chairperson when the donation was concluded, was linked to the controversial deal by two signatures on the final agreement and a letter addressed to him on the same subject.
Read: Mokgoro ‘signed off wild animals’ in controversial R100m donation
Mokgoro did not respond to questions on this previously and did not respond again after questions were sent to his spokesperson, Ngesi, on October 15.
Are the animals coming or staying?
Mokgoro said during the question and answer session the animals could be returned next year.
“The [parks] board is in discussion with SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings with regard to the return of the animals,” he said.
“The relevant department, through the MEC, will provide ongoing report and feedback to the legislature through the relevant portfolio committee relating to the SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings’ matter and progress in ensuring the animals are returned to government.”
With Mokgoro saying the animals will be returned and the portfolio committee report citing some irregularities, the economic development, environment, conservation and tourism department said it found nothing wrong with the donation when it looked at it after taking over the parks board.
“It has had a good look into this particular game donation matter as was inherited from the then department of rural development, environment and agricultural development, and we are comfortable that the project has met requirements of the policy provision that guides such activities within the North West parks board, and we have not in any way been favoured with any instruction of reversal of the initiative as outlined in your list of questions,” Tshikovhi said.
Coming from a department that oversees the parks board now and saying it has looked into the subject in question after its takeover, Tshikovhi’s statement contradicts what Mokgoro said on the record in the legislature in September.
Mokgoro said a “clear directive was issued” to the parks to get the wheels rolling on processes aimed at getting the animals returned.
According to the agreement, SA Rare Game Breeders’ Holdings would from the third year of the commencement of the agreement assist BEE partners to establish a breeding programme on their own farms with breeding stock according to their shares in the company.
Tshikovhi said, three years since the donation was made, this was yet to happen.
He said they were still dealing with “certain elements to do with beneficiaries which are halted due to the need for a review”. Meanwhile, there was no response to follow up questions to the premier’s spokesperson pointing out the contradictions between Mokgoro and the department.
The DA – which Mokgoro was responding to about the animals – said it was going to fight for their return.
“The department was ordered by Parliament’s portfolio committee to return the animals more than a year ago. The people responsible for this dubious deal must be held accountable and face the might of the law as I believe it to be part of state capture and the officials and politicians must be held liable for the corrupt deal,” said Jacqueline Theologo, DA North West member of the provincial legislature.
“I am also wondering what role Mokgoro has now in helping the return of our North West assets while he was the board chairperson who signed the game donation deal in the first place.
“I think while Mokgoro is going to cooperate with the Zondo commission on the SA Express matter; I challenge him to take the country into confidence as to what happened with the game deal as it links to matters of state capture.”
- This article first appeared in the print edition of November 20 2019. In it we erroneously referred to the South African National Parks Board instead of the provincial parks board. The error has been corrected in this article.
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