Cape Town - The SANDF did not follow the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) process for the leasing of the St George Hotel in Tshwane, says Defence Minister Thandi Modise.
Modise said Secretary of Defence Sonto Kudjoe and chief of SANDF lieutenant-general Rudzani Maphwanya have been ordered to correct what went wrong with the lease agreement for the training of senior officers and take action against responsible officials.
In March, reports surfaced suggesting that the hotel was to house the headquarters of the Defence College and the SA War College to the tune of R5 million a month.
This was weeks after the St George Hotel announced that it was closing down, citing challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic, load shedding and general service delivery failures that put the business under severe pressure.
The turn of events sparked outrage from some opposition parties.
The Freedom Front Plus had at the time questioned why other facilities were not upgraded, and then threatened to ask Public Protector Busiswe Mkhwebane to look into the matter.
The DA said there seemed to be multiple irregularities with the lease contract.
It then undertook to submit questions to Modise and Kudjoe on the lease.
In his parliamentary questions, DA MP Sarel Marais said Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke highlighted two material irregularities on property payment and asset management contracts and her reporting on expenses on unplanned and new leases.
Marais asked the processes followed for the lease on the St George Hotel and the sections of PFMA and other relevant legislation and regulations the department relied on before entering into the lease agreement.
In her written response, Modise said the lease agreement was signed by the chief of logistics as the functional authority for facilities in the Department of Defence.
She said control systems and processes that were embarked upon by the SANDF were outside the normal procurement systems.
“The decision was taken by the military command council of the SANDF prior to the expiring of the lease agreement that the SA National War College must relocate to a suitable facility conducive for training,” she said.
The Department of Defence does not have any facility that can be utilised for the South African National War College, she said.
Modise also said the logistics division had commenced with a search for a suitable facility to accommodate the War College.
“Various facilities such as the Telkom Learning Centre and Leriba Lodge were investigated but were found unsuitable to provide training.
“It was only the St George Hotel that was most suitable after the hotel was put on the market.”
The logistics division appointed the South African Army Foundation in February 2022 to facilitate the acquisition of the St George Hotel since the foundation has trading and expertise that were not available in SANDF.
Modise added that her department ordered the top brass of the department to take action on the lease agreement that was concluded without following PFMA processes.
“The secretary of Defence and chief of SANDF have been directed to rectify the process and take the necessary action against members who flouted the processes,” she said.
Cape Times