Senior SANDF Officers Suspended for 6 years on Full Pay

A reply to a Democratic Alliance (DA) parliamentary question indicates that 42 members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) are currently under suspension on full pay, and that a significant number of them have been suspended for more than one year. The average length of time for which members are suspended on full pay is more than two years, and the South African Army appears to be the worst offender. Two people at rank level 9, for example, have been suspended for almost 6 years on full pay.

The SANDF has spent a total of R10 907 429 on suspended members' salaries over the past three financial years: an average of R3.6m each year. This is an astonishing waste of money that could have been better spent on training and equipment, which are currently in perilously short supply. It is unacceptable that it should take this long for the SANDF to process and conclude its disciplinary matters, particularly since its suspended members are able to enjoy full remuneration - at the government's expense - for periods of years rather than months.

For any member to be suspended for more than a year also indicates that there are serious problems with the effectiveness and efficiency of the military disciplinary system.

The worst examples of lengthy suspensions in the SANDF are:

• Member at rank level 13 = suspended for 4 years and 2 months;
• Member at rank level 12  = suspended for 5 years and 9 months;
• Member at rank level 12  = suspended for 5 years and 8 months;
• Member at rank level 10  = suspended for 4 years and 10 months; and
• Two members at rank level 9 = suspended for 5 years and 9 months.

The DA calls for a full review of the military justice system and will be pursuing this matter further at Parliament.

Statement issued by Rafeek Shah MP, Democratic Alliance spokesperson on defence, August 21 2008