Fórum Defesa Brasil

Denel likened to a rotting carcass

In yet another broadside at Denel and its sole shareholder – the South African government – Isaac Mashaba, a regular commentator on government’s achievements and “challenges”, uses The Citizen to claim the State-owned defence and technology conglomerate is living proof of “a strategic disaster”.

He writes: “The hollowing-out and bankrupting of the South African arms industry, under the leaky umbrella of Denel, was a strategic disaster South Africa could ill afford”.

“What was once a world-renowned and trusted supplier of defence equipment is now a rotting carcass. This giant and strategic SOE (State-owned enterprise) has, like many before it, been hollowed out and driven to the point of collapse. As a result of incompetence, mismanagement, a lack of leadership and corruption, it morphed into a starving shell of its former self, unable to even pay its employees.

“A nation is only prepared for conflict and war if its defence industry is correctly structured, innovative, functional and profitable. This is an indication of how secure it is and how efficiently and rapidly it can equip and sustain its security forces when they are called to operational duty.

“It is also a major foreign currency earner and can be successfully utilised by government to project influence.

“The defence industry not only equips the armed forces to counter a host of diverse threats, but also drives technical and scientific innovation.

“It encourages strong public-private partnerships and entrepreneurship.

“It generates foreign income with export sales. It employs thousands and creates a multitude of new jobs.

“This presupposes government and its defence policies are forward thinking and guided and directed by sound and credible political forecasting. It presupposes there is a national strategy focussed on security and socio-economic strategies and plans that benefit the entire country.

“Not only has government sabotaged and wrecked this valuable strategic asset, but it also drove South African defence innovation to foreign shores where our scientists and technologists are welcomed and in high demand.

“It furthermore sold off defence elated intellectual property and manufacturing facilities that took years and many millions of taxpayers Rand to develop and refine. Those elements of Denel not sold off, were hollowed out and neglected to the point they cannot be replicated. This smacks of something very wrong in our collapsed defence industry. And the question must surely be asked: Who benefits? It is certainly not South Africa.

“The planned replacement of the Ratel infantry fighting vehicle was an expensive import to be built domestically. Known as the Badger, R7.6 billion is already spent but with no vehicles. Surely this is an indicator of something very, very wrong with what is happening in Denel and other SOEs.

“Perhaps the aim is to equip the SANDF with commercial vehicles and expect them to conduct real military tasks.

“While government has focussed its attentions on non-relevant matters and non-entities of no value to South Africa and its citizens, it has neglected Africa. In the process, it lost the trust of the continent along with the ability to project any form of defence or industrial power.

“As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues so too does the requirement for defence equipment escalate.

“Africa has long been a buyer of equipment from Russia and Ukraine and this war will result in many problems in purchasing spare parts, ammunition and support to maintain equipment from those countries.”

“Had Denel not been wilfully destroyed,” Mashaba postulates, “South Africa would have a perfect opportunity to not only boost our defence industry but play an important role in assisting and supporting African armies refurbish and maintain their equipment. It would have been a perfect opportunity to assist those governments with new equipment – ‘proudly made in South Africa’ – as well”.

“Government chose to ignore the plight of Africa. Instead of focusing on securing our own defence industry along with an important role on the African continent government believed if one drank tea and did nothing, there would never be a threat.

“While government chose to continually exercise its strategic short-sightedness the rest of the world didn’t. Instead, our military experts, scientists, and technicians were recruited by governments to do what South Africa should have been doing.

“This lack of forward thinking opened doors to numerous foreign defence contractors and companies. They identified potential problems Africa will soon be facing and have no doubt already made the necessary approaches and contacts.

“By failing to recognise an important market, both government and Denel disadvantaged themselves, the nation, our armed forces, our economy, our industries and the continent.”

https://www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/d ... g-carcass/

SANDF in “tatters” FF+ claims


Freedom Front Plus (FF+) leader Pieter Groenewald maintains the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) is in “tatters” following a weekend report of soldiers accommodated in torn and tattered tents while generals had luxurious accommodation for Armed Forces Day (AFD) 2023 in Richards Bay.

The report in Rapport, South Africa’s lone Afrikaans Sunday weekly, has it today’s (Tuesday, 21 February) AFD parade where President Cyril Ramaphosa is wearing his SANDF Commander-in-Chief cap, will cost R220 million.

The cost when taken alongside Groenewald’s take on the readiness of the SANDF, including it cannot keep cooling working some information technology (IT) systems and band members having to fork out bus fare for the trip to Richards Bay, paint “a sombre picture of the decline in the force”.

He also points to a loss of discipline and order saying in a statement “it is becoming ever more evident all SANDF components have declined to a large extent”.

By way of illustration he notes R26 million could not be found in the defence budget to provide equipment needed to maintain the data system, used for among others, salary payments and procurement.

“Yet there is R220 million to create the impression South Africa’s national defence force is ready and able.”

Groenewald maintains only four of 11 Rooivalk combat support helicopters are serviceable and only two Gripen fighter jets, costing billions each, are operational, with pilots “sitting on their hands”. He adds “there is basically no warship” to participate in the Mosi naval exercise with China and Russia.

“The Navy only has two ships participating in the controversial exercise, one a survey ship, which is more than 50 years old and the other the frigate SAS Mendi (F157),” his statement reads. The newest addition to the SA Navy (SAN) fleet – the multi-mission inshore patrol vessel (MMIPV) SAS King Sekhukhune 1 (P1571) is also in Richards Bay for Mosi.

South African defence and military watchers point out AFD, in addition to its memorial and showcasing components, is an extended and large logistic exercise, “definitely part and parcel of force preparation and training”.

https://www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/s ... ff-claims/