AN URGENT APPEAL TO PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA TO INTERVENE CONCERNING PRASA

24 FEBRUARY 2018 MY OPEN LETTER TO: THE STATE PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA, THE HONOURABLE CYRIL RAMAPHOSA; THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT, THE HONOURABLE JOE MASWANGANYI; THE FORMER CEO OF PRASA, MR. LUCKY MONTANA; THE ACTING CEO OF PRASA, MR. CROMET MOLEPO; THE CEO OF THE RAILWAY SAFETY REGULATOR, MR. NKULULEKU POYA; THE FORMER PRASA CHAIRPERSON AND CURRENT DEPUTY FINANCE MINISTER SFISO BUTHELEZI; THE PRESENT PRASA CHAIRPERSON, ADVOCATE TAN MAKHUBELE; NEW PRASA BOARD MEMBERS: Dr. Natalie Skeepers; Prof. John Maluleke; MC Reddy; G Maluleke; X George; THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT, MS. DIKELEDI MAGADZI (ANC); MEMBERS OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT: MS. DEIDRE CARTER (COPE); MR. MANUEL DE FREITAS (DA); MR. TERENCE MPANZA (ANC); MR. THILIVHALI MULAUDZI (EFF); MR. GOODWILL RADEBE (ANC); MR. LEONARD RAMATLAKANE (ANC); MR. MALIYAKHE SHELEMBE (NFP); MR. LEONARD RAMATLAKANE (ANC); MR. MTIKENI SIBANDE (ANC); MR. KHETHAMABALA SITHOLE (IFP) AND MS. SHIELLA XEGO (ANC); THE ORGANISER OF #UNITEBEHIND, MR. ZACKIE ACHMAT ________________________________________ AS SUBMITTED BY BISHOP LOUIS MICHAEL GREEN AND THE CONGREGATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH OF CHRIST, BONTEHEUWEL, WHO ARE REGULAR METRORAIL COMMUTERS AND WHO GREATLY DESIRE A SAFE, AFFORDABLE, RELIABLE, ACCESSIBLE AND QUALITY TRAIN SERVICE TO ALL COMMUTERS THROUGHOUT SOUTH AFRICA. ________________________________________   Dear Honourable President Cyril Ramaphosa As peace-loving, law-abiding citizens of South Africa, I and members of our church, the Apostolic Church of Christ, Bonteheuwel, Cape Town, were greatly encouraged by your moving state of the nation address. For the first time, in ten years, we as ordinary South Africans, have been greatly inspired by a presidential state of the nation address and we have hope again for a brighter future. We have been particularly moved and inspired by your words when you said: “We should honour Madiba by putting behind us the era of discord, disunity and disillusionment. We should put behind us the era of diminishing trust in public institutions and weakened confidence in leaders. We should put all the negativity that has dogged our country behind us because a new dawn is upon us. It is a new dawn that is inspired by our collective memory of Nelson Mandela and the changes that are unfolding. As we rid our minds of all negativity, we should reaffirm our belief that South Africa belongs to all who live in it. For though we are a diverse people, we are one nation. There are 57-million of us, each with different histories, languages, cultures, experiences, views and interests. Yet we are bound together by a common destiny.” (https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2018-02-16-in-full--read-cyril-ramaphosas-first-state-of-the-nation-address/) We particularly concur with your resolve that ‘Tough decisions have to be made to close our fiscal gap, stabilize our debt and restore our state-owned enterprises to health’ and in this regard we wish to particularly refer to PRASA and the train services which are being provided by Metrorail to commuters. Most of our church members are ordinary working class people who do not own cars and we are therefore compelled to use public transport such as minibus taxis and more often the more affordable Metrorail train service, especially when we travel on a daily basis to work from Bonteheuwel to Cape Town. We appeal to you as our new State President to support us in our struggle for a safe, affordable, reliable, accessible and quality train service to be provided by Metrorail. Mr President, tell us as train commuters from Bonteheuwel what we should do to make a contribution and we would gladly do so as volunteers, expecting no remuneration. In order to understand why the Metrorail train service has been deteriorating so rapidly we started to do our own basic research using the internet and we have made several discoveries about the root causes which I have shared with our congregation and which I would also like to share with you. I believe that once the following root causes have been adequately addressed, we would have an excellent Metrorail train service throughout South Africa: 1) THE FULL BUDGET ALLOCATED BY THE MINISTER OF FINANCE TO PRASA VIA THE MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT MUST BE DILIGENTLY AND FRUGALLY EXPENDED FOR THE PURPOSE WHICH IT WAS INTENDED WITHOUT DIMINISHING THE BUDGET AS A RESULT OF STATE CAPTURE, FRAUD, GRAND CORRUPTION, WASTFUL EXPENDITURE, INCOMPETENCE, GROSS MISMANAGEMENT, CRIMINALITY AND NEGLIGENCE. Mr President, you promised us (and we believe you) a new beginning to reverse the tide of state capture and corruption when you said in SONA: “This is the year in which we will turn the tide of corruption in our public institutions. The criminal justice institutions have been taking initiatives that will enable us to deal effectively with corruption. The Commission of Inquiry into State Capture headed by the Deputy Chief Justice, Judge Raymond Zondo, is expected to commence its work shortly. The commission is critical to ensuring that the extent and nature of state capture is established, that confidence in public institutions is restored and that those responsible for any wrongdoing should be identified. The commission should not displace the regular work of the country’s law enforcement agencies in investigating and prosecuting any and all acts of corruption. Amasela aba imali ka Rhilumente mawabanjwe. (Thieves who are stealing public funds should be arrested and prosecuted).” Mr. President, the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture headed by the Deputy Chief Justice, Judge Raymond Zondo, will merely confirm what we already know and which have been revealed by the previous Public Protector, Advocate Thuli Madonsela in her report number 3 of 2015/6 entitled “Derailed”. As ordinary working class, struggling commuters, the findings by the former Public Protector, Advocate Thuli Madonsela, as described in her report, are most startling to us and we now have a better understanding why Metrorail does not have the funding to provide safe, affordable, reliable, accessible and quality train service to us. There is ENOUGH MONEY TO PROVIDE AN EXCELLENT TRAIN SERVICE TO ALL TRAIN COMMUTERS, but in the light of Advocate Madonsela’s findings, the following acts of state capture, grand corruption, criminality, wasteful expenditure and maladministration by PRASA and METRORAIL are the true reasons why millions of ordinary people representing the working class are forced to endure these unsafe, inconvenient, nightmarish journeys on Metro trains daily. “ On 24 August 2015, Advocate Thulisile Madonsela released “Derailed: A report on an investigation into allegations of maladministration, financial mismanagement, tender irregularities and appointment irregularities against the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA)”. The Public Protector found evidence of systemic maladministration at nearly all levels of PRASA’s financial management, tendering and appointment processes.” (https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/prasa-leaks-how-state-capture-happened-at-prasa.pdf - p2) “ One of the most important remedial actions prescribed by Advocate Madonsela required the Chairman of the PRASA Board to “commission the National Treasury in conducting a forensic investigation into all PRASA contracts above R10 million since 2012 and take measures to address any findings regarding systemic administrative deficiencies allowing ongoing maladministration and related improprieties in its procurement system. One of the reasons this finding was made was because she could not get access to documents relating to procurement… In February 2016, the National Treasury, in compliance with the Public Protector’s directions, commissioned forensic investigations into 216 contracts awarded by PRASA between 2012 and 2015. Of these, only 13 were found to have been above-board.” (https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/prasa-leaks-how-state-capture-happened-at-prasa.pdf - p2) “Deputy Minister of finance Sfiso Buthelezi must be criminally charged for overlooking unbridled mismanagement and alleged corruption during his tenure as board chair of the beleaguered state owned rail agency Prasa, an investigation by National Treasury has found. The investigation into 216 contracts awarded between 2012 and 2015, conducted by about a dozen forensic auditing firms, indicates that crippling mismanagement and criminality in Prasa reached systemic proportions in the years Buthelezi presided over Prasa. Out of 216 contracts with a combined value of about R19bn, only 13 were found to be above board with no further recommendations made. Some of the recommendations and findings include: • Buthelezi and his fellow board members must be criminally charged for contravening several sections of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) in the course of the awarding of at least 30 contracts - an offence that can lead to a hefty fine or up to five years in jail; • Prasa’s record keeping is in shambles. Indications are that the most basic corporate functions have been left by the wayside - recommendations include that Prasa should conduct “proper needs analysis and market research before it procures goods and services”; • Crucial and confidential documents were lost, stolen and destroyed, hampering an in-depth investigation, possibly concealing the culpability of Prasa’s management; and • The former group CEO Lucky Montana must be criminally charged for his role in several contracts and his relationship with some service providers must be investigated by the police. National Treasury did not duplicate Prasa’s own investigations, which in addition found that another two contracts awarded to Siyangena Technologies and Swifambo Rail Leasing worth R4bn and R3,5bn respectively are highly irregular and must be cancelled. In the process of trying to cancel these contracts, Buthelezi’s successor, Popo Molefe, has sensationally claimed in court documents, under oath, that Montana benefited personally and irregularly from Prasa contracts and that R80 million in kickbacks have secretly been siphoned off to the ANC. In the past Montana and the ANC have strenuously denied these claims. Questioned by parliament in November last year, Popo defended the expensive investigations Prasa embarked on, saying his board were dealing with ‘legacy issues’.” (https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-06-10-scorpio-prasa-treasury-investigation-recommends-sfiso-buthelezi-be-criminally-charged/#.WpGOPahuaMp) https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=11&v=0Gvy8X-5aR8 So honourable President Ramaphosa, the longer ministers like Deputy Minister Sfiso Buthelezi remain part of your cabinet, the less credible your promise of decisively dealing with endemic corruption will sound to us as ordinary working class citizens. Faith without works is dead. Honourable President Ramaphosa, now is the time for action to match your words. You have to start cleaning up the rot inside your own cabinet before we as commuters and voters would display any trust in your party during the next national elections in 2019. In the meantime, I and the congregation of the Apostolic Church of Christ will continue to pray for you that the Lord may continue to provide you with the knowledge and wisdom to govern our country with righteousness and justice. Be greatly blessed. Kind Regards Bishop Louis Michael Green Email: louisgreen69@gmail.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/GreenWcape ________________________________________ SOURCES CONSULTED TO DRAFT THE CONTENT OF THIS LETTER: PRASA/METRORAIL MISMANAGEMENT AND CORRUPTION THE STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA http://www.thepresidency.gov.za/state-of-the-nation-address/state-nation-address-president-republic-south-africa%2C-mr-cyril-ramaphosa https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2018-02-16-in-full--read-cyril-ramaphosas-first-state-of-the-nation-address/ THE INTERIM BOARD OF PRASA https://www.fin24.com/Companies/Industrial/cabinet-appoints-new-interim-prasa-board-20171019 HOW PRASA HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY STATE CAPTURE https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/prasa-leaks-how-state-capture-happened-at-prasa..pdf PRASA’S CEO LUCKY MONTANA https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2018-01-15-fresh-evidence-found-against-prasas-lucky-montana/ PRASA CHAIRMAN SFISO BUTHELEZI BE CRIMINALLY CHARGED https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-06-10-scorpio-prasa-treasury-investigation-recommends-sfiso-buthelezi-be-criminally-charged/#.WpGOPahuaMp THE INABILITY OF PRASA’S BOARD TO APPOINT CREDIBLE AND TRUSTWORTHY CEO’S. https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2018-01-15-fresh-evidence-found-against-prasas-lucky-montana/ GENERAL DETERIORATION OF METRO RAIL SERVICE http://www.infrastructurene.ws/2017/12/08/metrorails-stats-reveal-just-how-bad-its-service-is/ https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/unitebehind-commute-episode-1.mp3 https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/unitebehind-commute-episode-2.mp3 https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2017-08-15-a-400-increase-in-train-cancellations-worries-the-western-cape/ METRORAIL AND THE PROBLEM OF BROKEN TRAINS https://www.groundup.org.za/article/metrorail-should-have-fixed-central-line-trains-say-commuters/ CAUSES OF TRAIN COLLISIONS https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2018-01-09-transport-minister-orders-expedited-investigation-of-sas-railways/ https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2018-01-04-at-least-100-injured-after-shosholoza-meyl-train-derails/ RAILWAY SAFETY REGULATOR https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2018-01-05-railway-safety-regulator-to-release-preliminary-train-crash-findings-on-monday/ HOW THE POOR SERVICE BY METRORAIL IS IMPACTING THE EDUCATION OF OUR CHILDREN https://www.groundup.org.za/article/metrorail-failing-us-say-school-children-who-miss-classes-daily/ CABLE THEFT FROM METRORAIL https://m.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/in-depth-inside-metrorails-cable-theft-and-commuter-crisis-20180222 PRASA AND METRORAIL ACTIVISM https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/metrorail-pamphlet-black-and-white.pdf https://www.facebook.com/UniteBehind/ https://unitebehind.org.za/wp-content/uploads/unitebehind-commute-episode-1.mp3 LACK OF SAFETY AND SECURITY ON METRORAIL TRAINS https://www.southernmail.co.za/news/wrongful-train-death-mom-takes-action-13401170 https://www.groundup.org.za/article/sa-railways-r1-billion-accident-and-crime-bill/ http://www.rsr.org.za/Documents/State%20of%20Safety%20Reports/RSR%20State%20of%20Safety%20Report%202016-17.compressed.pdf CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE ON METRORAIL TRAINS https://www.southernmail.co.za/news/wrongful-train-death-mom-takes-action-13401170 PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT https://www.groundup.org.za/article/prasa-board-fails-pitch-parliamentary-meeting/ THE PUPLIC PROTECTOR REPORTS https://www.gov.za/sites/www.gov.za/files/PUBLIC_PROTECTOR_INVESTIGATION_REPORT_NO_3_OF_201516_PRASA_24082015a.pdf THE TRANSNET DEAL WITH BOMBARDIER AND EXPORT DEVELOPMENT CANADA (EDC) https://www.businesslive.co.za/fm/features/2017-12-21-transnets-costly-train-detour/ THE TRANSNET R4 BILLION IT DEAL WITH T-SYSTEMS http://amabhungane.co.za/article/2017-11-14-exclusive-gupta-negotiator-and-the-r4bn-transnet-it-deal ________________________________________