The Secretary to Parliament, Mr Xolile George, briefed the media on the findings of the investigation into the fire that gutted Parliament on 1 January 2022. He also briefed the media on other parliamentary administrative matters yesterday at Parliament’s Imbizo Centre.
Mr George said the burning of Parliament remains an indelible and traumatic incident in the annals of its history and the entire nation. “The blaze, which gutted the National Assembly Chamber and hundreds of offices, has underscored the critical importance of safeguarding these buildings of constitutional and historical significance. It is imperative to address the security breach that enabled the actions of the arsonist, ultimately resulting in such devastating destruction,” he said.
He said the report would be tabled before the Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament in the prescribed manner. Briefing the media he said: “Today we are giving an update of a matter that is of significant interest in the lives of South Africans, who once woke up and realised that their most prized institution was gutted in fire.”
“Naturally people will ask, what happened; what led to the situation where Parliament was burnt down. So, Parliament undertook to understand its own vulnerability.”
The fire began on 1 January 2022 and the suspect was quickly arrested and this matter is still before the courts. The work to rebuild the institution has started with clearing the site, and money had been set aside in this financial year for that purpose.
Mr George said South Africans were relieved that the suspect central to the fire was found immediately and put in custody. He said the assignment to investigate was given to him on his arrival at Parliament by the executive authority of the institution and remedial measures were put in place to prevent future reoccurrence of similar incidents.
“There were other matters apart from the fire that I was directed to deal with.” Fire specialists were identified in carrying out the investigation. Included in the report were findings that Parliament security was inadequate, minimum-services security standards of Parliament were not adhered to, and poor physical fencing all resulted in easy access and the institution being invaded.
Mr George said there will be consequences for staff members implicated in the report. He said about 28 staff members will be investigated for the role they played in the fire. He said staff not directly employed by Parliament will also be disciplined by their departments.
“Identifying the culprits is subject to further investigation. Those processes are part of how Parliament will take further engagements including the affected employees.” He is sure of 18 employees who may have to answer on a number of issues with regards to this incident.
The report highlighted issues that contributed to the security breach of Parliament and allowed easy access in the precinct as:
• Parliament’s minimum services security standards were not adhered to
• Lack of physical fencing and the height of the perimeter fencing
• a range of systems and maintenance failures
• pervasive non-compliance with fire regulations and requirements across multiple areas, including smoke detectors, fire alarm panels, emergency notification systems, sprinkler systems and evacuation route planning.
Mr George said to address these critical issues, a comprehensive slate of recommended remedial action, which include the urgent implementation of recommendations from the BDO report, security risk assessments conducted by the South African Police Service and the swift appointment of a dedicated Head of Security Management, have been outlined.
“An exhaustive evaluation of fire compliance for all Parliament buildings, guided by a qualified fire engineer, will be conducted, and a coherent fire plan will be designed and implemented. The report emphasised that the fire incident could have been prevented, or its extent limited, if certain critical measures had been in place.”
Mr George explained that Parliament could not discipline officials who have left the institution’s employment, as disciplinary matters were issues between an employer and an employee.
Sibongile Maputi
19 October 2023
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