SANDF chief under fire over R100k first class flight
2014-08-26 11:37
Chief of the
South African National Defence Force, General SollyShoke (Picture: AFP)
Johannesburg -
The chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), Chief Lieutenant
General SollyShoke, is
under fire after allegedly spending more than R100 000 on a first class air
ticket to attend a conference in Malaysia in April.
Eyewitness News reports
that Shoke apparently insisted on travelling first class on Emirates. Travel
costs for him and two other officials reportedly came to R218 000.
David Maynier, DA
shadow deputy minister of state security, said in a statement he will
request the Auditor General to investigate whether the flight is in
contravention of cost containment measures set out by the Treasury, which
prohibit first class travel.
He will also
submit a written parliamentary question to find out the details about the
incident, and Shoke's international travel between 2011 and 2014.
'Opulence'
According to EWN, the
SANDF has defended the amount, saying it was cost effective considering the
type of trip that was taken, and travel costs to Malaysia.
However, the SA National Defence Union's
PikkieGreef said the union is "highly disgusted" by the revelations,
and the "brazen defence of such despicable behaviour by the SANDF in its
reaction".
"While
troops work daily in dilapidated buildings and commanders struggle with
budgetary constraints, the top echelon of the SANDF apparently think nothing of
living in opulence, using the taxpayers' money, and defending their behaviour
by dishonestly hiding behind 'operational necessity' of ridiculous
expenses," Greefsaid.
Maynier said
the decision to travel first class was a "monumental failure of
judgement".
"In the
end, it’s simply wrong for the chief of the defence force, General Shoke, to
spend a fortune on first-class flights when ordinary soldiers, serving on the
frontline, do not have the equipment they require, to properly execute their
mission, because of budget constraints in the defence force," Mayniersaid.
In July,
secretary of defence Sam Gulube told
Parliament's defence portfolio committee that the SANDF is facing a
remuneration budget shortfall of over
R1bn, and this will affect future deployments.
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/SANDF-chief-under-fire-over-R100k-first-class-flight-20140826
