Parliament, Wednesday, 9 October 2024 – The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Transport, Mr Donald Selamolela, has called on the Airports Company South Africa, to ensure safety at the East London Airport, before flights in and out could resume.
The committee noted the inconvenience due to suspension of flights in and out of East London, due to bad weather on Tuesday. Mr Selamolela said the cancellation of flights was understandable when weather conditions did not allow for safe aviation. South Africans need to understand the challenge that ACSA was faced with and accept the apologies.
On Tuesday, the committee kickstarted its week-long oversight in Gauteng where it visited all aviation entities. Mr Selamolela, said the committee was excited to kickstart its first official visits to entities in the portfolio of transport.
“The committee implores the Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS) together with all relevant stakeholders to ensure that all outstanding issues are attended to as speedily as possible.”
He said: “It gives us great pleasure as the seventh administration committee on transport to be getting the feel of the oversight responsibilities. We will not fail South Africans when it comes to conducting oversight on the entities and we will ensure that what government commits to do by way of service delivery occurs, and that people benefit from the value add of aviation.”
The committee will visit entities in the road space on Wednesday, including the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) and rail around Johannesburg. Mr Selamolela said it is every member’s interest that SANRAL and the Passenger Rail Agency Limited (SANRAL) optimally functioned.
“Transport is an infrastructure portfolio, and its functionality not only bodes well for safe, affordable, efficient public transport, but also creates direct and sustainable jobs. The commitment we have to South Africans is that we will not fail them on this portfolio and this oversight is the continuation of that commitment which started a while back with consecutive administration led by the ANC.”
He said the visit to entities will appraise members of the committee with such practical issues as governance, projects on the ground, leadership and projects currently on the go or stalled. “This would allow us to make credible and informed interventions when necessary to the entities and beyond paper presentations which sometimes do not give the true picture as reflecting on the ground,” added Mr Selamolela.
The committee was satisfied with what it found on its first day of the visit.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT, MR DONALD SELAMOLELA.
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Name: Mr Sibongile Maputi
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Email: smaputi@parliament.gov.za
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