Defence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu has denied that the SANDF is in a shambles

Cape Town - Defence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu vigorously supported acting defence secretary Tsepe Motumi yesterday, despite his shockingly poor performance *1 before Parliament's standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) last week.

Motumi's inability to answer questions about aspects of the department's qualified audit report for 2008-09 so disgusted MPs on Scopa that he and his team were dismissed.

Sisulu's comments in Parliament about Motumi's competence for his job other than his lack of eloquence suggested that he is in line to be appointed permanently to the position *2*3.

The minister strongly rejected suggestions that her department was in a shambles, telling Parliament's defence committee that it was well on the way to achieving unqualified audit status in this financial year, after nine years of qualified audits.

Sisulu's appearance before the defence committee was intended to correct misperceptions that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) might not be battle-ready and that Motumi was not competent to do his job.

There is the impression out there that defence is in shambles, that it is a time bomb and that it would not be able to defend the country, Sisulu said. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are completely on top of the situation, she emphasised.

Although she would not disclose the recommendation she made to President Jacob Zuma about a permanent appointment for the position of defence secretary, Sisulu insisted Motumi had the qualities required for the job *3.

These sentiments were shared by defence committee chairman Mnyamazeli Booi *4, who was confident about Motumi's capacity, experience and reliability.

Sisulu was hopeful Zuma would announce the appointment by the end of March he seemed comfortable with the candidate. An appointment of a permanent chief financial officer was also in the offing the incumbent had been in an acting capacity for a long time, she said.

The minister admitted to being baffled and shocked by the way Motumi had crumbled in the face of pressure by Scopa members at his first meeting with them, especially as the defence team had spent a lot of time preparing themselves for the interrogation. He was unable to answer questions about the department's management of tangible assets. The way the department classified its assets was different from the way the Treasury required it to do so.

Sisulu told MPs that the defence secretary was not responsible for defending the country and his inability to answer questions in Parliament was not a reflection on the SANDF and its state of readiness.

She said that the department had suffered as a result of the sudden resignation in 2008 of both former minister Mosiuoa Lekota and his deputy, Mluleki George , as a result of political upheavals in the ruling African National Congress in the aftermath of its Polokwane conference in December 2007 and the firing of former president Thabo Mbeki in 2008.

"No other department was as affected as defence," Sisulu said.

Not long after the resignations, in August 2008, the defence secretary at the time, January Masilela, died and Motumi was appointed in an acting capacity.

The minister said a turnaround in the management of the defence department was under way and she was confident there would be no further qualified audits. However, it might be necessary to deviate from the Treasury's accounting standards on some matters for a few years while the system was fixed. She said she was impressed by what had been achieved so far.

Sisulu said the department was addressing the six items that had resulted in the qualified audit: the management of assets; disclosure of lease commitments; irregular expenditure; lack of verification of payments; accruals; and departmental revenue.

Sisulu told the committee that the inspector-general had submitted an inconclusive report on the allegations related to the head of procurement, Mthobisi Zondi. The preliminary report suggested there was no prima facie case against Zondi but Sisulu said she would make a definitive statement only when she received the final report.

With acknowledgements to Linda Ensor and Business Day.