By Staff Reporter
The Democratic Alliance wants Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau to expedite an investigation into governance issues at the SA Bureau of Standards (SABS).
This follows the party’s trade, industry and competition spokesperson, Toby Chance, receiving another account from a whistleblower. It was not signed.
Chance said that based on the account, it was clear that the rot at the SABS was even deeper than previously exposed.
He said on Tuesday that the letter provided a detailed account of the long-standing governance failures, naming both current and former employees, board members and public officials implicated in years of dysfunction.
It confirmed serious internal divisions and ongoing power struggles within the institution and not just isolated issues.
TSU International is currently investigating SABS management. The deadline for the investigation is 31 May.
Chance said the most recent letter had been sent to Tau and several key stakeholders.
“Though Tau has been made aware of all the allegations contained in whistleblower accounts since August 2024, this latest letter lays bare the depth of the management collapse at the SABS.
“After reading this new whistleblower account I must now demand that minister Tau includes these latest allegations in the TSU International investigation, and I insist that Minister Tau speeds up the investigation. The investigation must include the board of directors, suppliers, customers and other stakeholders in the SABS value chain, past and present,” he said in a statement.
Chance said that if necessary, investigators must be empowered to commit additional resources to the probe to ensure a thorough and detailed report.
The chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Trade, Industry and Competition, Mzwandile Masina, said over the weekend that the ministry had been told to stabilise the board.
The committee engaged the minister and SABS on 28 January.
“The minister had indicated that he viewed the allegations seriously and that an investigation would be initiated, which has subsequently commenced.
“The committee is awaiting the outcomes of this investigation and had urged the Ministry to urgently stabilise the board and finalise the appointment of top management positions in the meantime,” he said in a statement.
Chance visited SABS in Pretoria earlier this month to create awareness about the allegations of misconduct at the state-owned enterprise.
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