Transnet locomotive
Civil rights organisation AfriForum has submitted a formal Promotion of Access to Information application to the Gauteng High Court, requesting State-owned freight utility Transnet to provide information on some of its operations.
The organisation is seeking transparency from the entity on all active contracts that Transnet or its subsidiaries have concluded with any logistics or freight companies, as well as those with private security companies, and a list of all train locomotives, coaches and wagons that Transnet owns.
Transnet had been at the centre of State Capture.
Coupled with this have been instances of vandalism and sabotage, as well as mismanagement, incompetence and a lack of accountability and transparency, which continue to impact negatively on the South African economy.
AfriForum believes the information it is requesting has a patent bearing on the robustness and functioning of Transnet and, by implication, the functioning of the economy in which all citizens have a stake.
Further, AfriForum also deems it prudent that the organisation and the South African public know how many criminal complaints Transnet has laid with the police for crimes committed against Transnet and its property, and how many hours the various ports have been shut down or closed for whatever reasons, as well as what percentage of Transnet’s rail lines are closed and not in use.
“The crucial importance of Transnet’s business dealings and operations to the South African economy, in conjunction with the recently demonstrated egregious corruption which has led to its downfall, drives AfriForum’s demands for transparency,” states AfriForum strategy and content campaign officer Ernst van Zyl.
He adds that corrupt dealings and illicitly awarded contracts of service are among the key reasons for Transnet’s failure.