Why the Competition Commission spent R15m on protection

A written reply to a parliamentary question by the DA’s Michael Cardo about VIP protection services afforded to senior staff at the Competition Commission (CompCom) has revealed that they were subject to a spate of criminal acts that necessitated R15 million worth of personal protection.

Cardo asked about the cost and the duration of the services and received the reply from economic development minister Ebrahim Patel who highlighted the fact that significant vested interests in the economy may be affected by the work of the commission, reports The Star.

According to Patel, CompCom commissioner Tembinkosi Bonakele reminded him that on the course of carrying out its responsibilities, the commission is privy to commercially sensitive information which may result in significant competition penalties being imposed on affected parties and the possibility of criminal charges being brought against individuals.

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In addition to senior officials being robbed of work equipment and documents on numerous occasions, the commission had also suffered a security breach at their premises sometime last year which saw two laptops get stolen. The laptops reportedly contained sensitive evidence.

All incidents had been reported to law enforcement but the investigating officers have not yet been able to identify suspects or a motive.

Patel confirmed that between June 2017 and March 2018, the commission paid R14.6 million to various security service providers.

A further R373,304 was paid to them between April and August this year.

Patel reported that the State Security Agency was approached to further investigate the criminal incidents. They have since undertaken a comprehensive assessment of the security requirements to ascertain whether the current levels of security are still needed.

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