02 Nov 2016

Parliament has been informed that there is no merit in having a government employee/representative in mines since government has representatives in boards of companies where there is shareholding to provide the necessary oversight.

Answering a question in Parliament on Tuesday from the MP for Nata/Gweta, Mr Paulson Majaga, Minister of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, Advocate Sadique Kebonang said it was also worth noting that different departments carried out their regular inspections or audits to satisfy themselves on running of the operations.

He, however, noted that the recent challenges by BCL was not a surprise to government as it was clear for some time that the company was going to face financial challenges given the trend where metal prices remained below the breakeven point for a long period.  

MP Majaga had asked the minister if he would consider having a government employee/representative in mines, to offer frequent updates on the operations of the mines to avoid instances such as the recent one at BCL. ENDS