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Yesterday’s shock announcement by the Minister of Energy, Tina Joematt-Petterson, that the first phase of the nuclear deal is to commence come September 30th is both astonishing and reckless.

Not only is the proposed nuclear deal the subject of litigation in the Western Cape High Court, but the announcement will add yet further fuel to the fire that will see South Africa’s international credit rating go up in smoke.

That this announcement is being made prior to the Mid-term Policy Statement, or Mini Budget, is yet another sign of the factional war between President Jacob Zuma and Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan – and is nothing more than a blatant attempt to bully Treasury into to coughing up the trillions of rands required to fund this unaffordable pet project of President Jacob Zuma.

Critically, the Minister’s decision to commence with the first phase of the nuclear new build programme, despite the fact that not a single document with regard to the deal has ever been presented to Parliament, is a blatant abuse of power.

The DA will demand the Minister’s makes all documentation relating to the nuclear deal be made available to the Portfolio Committee and Energy and tabled in the National Assembly. To this end – the DA is in possession of the Parliamentary Legal Advisor opinion – which clearly compels Ministers to provide all necessary documentation to Portfolio Committees irrespective of so-called “sensitivity”.

Minister Joemat-Pettersson is out of control and seems to be on a one man mission to undermine the wellbeing of South Africans. This must be stopped before she successfully enriches herself and bankrupts the nation.

Issued by DA