Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota told MPs yesterday that a new world war could be closer than they imagined.

Defending South Africa’s need for a defence force and its continued role as a continental peacekeeper, Lekota said not enough people were paying enough attention to subtle warning signs.

“I think it’s important for members of the House and all of us to reflect on the current problems that confront the whole world,” he said. “And many people have not observed or taken very seriously into mind that the world was under similar conditions when the First World War started.”

He was speaking in reply to the debate on his department’s budget vote.

World War 1, which had started as a small conflict in the Balkans before it went out of control, could very easily be repeated in Africa.

“At that time, the struggle for resources in those areas was nothing compared to the volume of resources that are being competed for in Africa,” he said, providing MPs with a history lesson that secured him a rare two minutes extra debating time.

He said the Democratic Republic of Congo, for example, was the focus of much international interest that could lead to fights over its vast resources.

“Those of us who are close to the situation there understand what is going on. We see what is going on. In fact, even South Africa’s role is not quite welcome because we are insisting on stabilising, on bringing peace, on privatising the interests of the development of the people of the DRC as part of the development of the people of the continent.”

He argued that the R26 billion the government spent on defence was not a lot if it helped prevent war.

And even though the country does not face any external threats, one could not wait until the last minute to buy weapons because the war would be long over by the time they arrived, he told MPs.

Meanwhile, Lekota and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel also came under fire from comrades and enemies alike for not spending enough on defence.

Safety and security committee chair Thandi Tobias said: “I wish that the honourable Minister of Finance was here today to hear what the committee was going to say when they plead with him to augment the budget in the near future.”

Tobias said the R25.9bn was not “adequate” for the SANDF to fulfil its regional peacekeeping and disaster management mandate. She demanded an aircraft carrier be added to the strategic arms procurement package shopping list, as it “would not be complete without one”.

Rejecting the budget, the DA said its projection at 1.2 % of GDP was below the 2% international norm. The ACDP said it was regrettable in view of the Budget’s R1bn surplus, that the Defence department did not receive more money.