The new intelligence firm made up of the who’s who of South Africa’s intelligence fraternity had the wherewithal to probe the supply chain of South Africa’s illegal mining scourge, said Foresight Advisory Services executive chairperson Gibson Njenje.

Njeje, who launched the company on the eve of the anniversary of the Marikana tragedy with an eye to preventing a recurrence, said he believed Foresight could have played a constructive role ahead of Marikana had it been in existence at the time.

Probing the illegal mining supply chain and trying to find out more about the powerful criminal syndicates that are driving illegal mining would be within the scope of his company, Njenje said in response to a Mining Weekly question.

Foresight nonexecutive directors include former ambassadors Moe Shaik and Jeff Maqetuka, as well as former South African National Intelligence Service head Dr Neil Barnard, former South African Police Service national commissioner George Fivaz and former South African Airways executive Nolwazi Qata.

“It’s well and good to provide security guards, cameras and alarms to protect our businesses and people, but that is all reactive. In most of these cases, death, destruction to property and harm are caused before corrective action is brought to bear.

“On the other hand, intelligence solutions provide foresight and early warning, and assist in predicting behaviour,” Njenje said.

The company, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies, would assist in preventing tragedies, like the killings in the platinum belt.

Johannesburg- and New York-listed Sibanye Gold CEO Neal Froneman warned last month that illegal gold mining had reached such a scale that it would not be inappropriate to bring in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to quell the scourge.

Froneman said the widespread notion that illegal mining was only taking place in illegal mines was completely false.

“It’s literally war and I don’t think it would be inappropriate to bring in the SANDF. It’s way out of control,” he said, recounting incidents of 150-plus illegal miners attacking plants.

He said Sibanye was spending R300-million a year on security, made up of former high-ranking Hawks.

The South African Police Service was unable to help because of its lack of capacity to go underground.

It was not only the unemployed that were mining illegally but also Sibanye’s own employees, who were developing the practice of sneaking back into the mine during their leave and mining for their own account.

The company had a “very significant” illegal mining problem at its Kloof Four Shaft, on the West Rand, where blasting wires were cut and ore boxes dropped, which created major disruption.

Froneman said large criminal syndicates were driving the illegal practice.

“Illegal mining is a huge issue and I don’t think that the general public is aware of how big this issue is,” Froneman added.