WEBVTT - Andrew Whitfield analysis 

0:00:00.000 --> 0:00:04.200
<v Speaker 1>So let's turn now to DA national spokesperson Villy Ocamp.

0:00:04.360 --> 0:00:07.440
<v Speaker 1>Mister Oakump, welcome and thanks very much for your time.

0:00:07.600 --> 0:00:10.160
<v Speaker 1>I have in front of me obviously the President's statement.

0:00:10.200 --> 0:00:14.240
<v Speaker 1>I also have the text of John sten Hazen's words

0:00:14.600 --> 0:00:19.959
<v Speaker 1>to Parliament. I'm struck by this. The President says that

0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:24.280
<v Speaker 1>when he met with John sten Hazen, he had indicated

0:00:24.560 --> 0:00:28.560
<v Speaker 1>clearly that he would look for the DA to put

0:00:28.600 --> 0:00:31.800
<v Speaker 1>forward a replacement for mister Whitfield. In other words, the

0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:35.720
<v Speaker 1>DA would not be losing this position. I'm curious as

0:00:35.760 --> 0:00:38.640
<v Speaker 1>to why mister steen Hazen didn't include that in his

0:00:38.760 --> 0:00:42.559
<v Speaker 1>account to Parliament, and indeed in his account to the country.

0:00:42.680 --> 0:00:45.160
<v Speaker 1>It's an important detail. Why was it left out?

0:00:46.440 --> 0:00:49.760
<v Speaker 2>Good afternoon, John John. With regards to the why was

0:00:49.800 --> 0:00:51.720
<v Speaker 2>he left out? I cannot answer you on that, but

0:00:51.760 --> 0:00:54.760
<v Speaker 2>I can tell you this that this is creating a

0:00:54.960 --> 0:00:57.520
<v Speaker 2>very dangerous president and maybe this.

0:00:57.640 --> 0:01:00.520
<v Speaker 1>Is the Sorry, mister Oakamp, I really need you to

0:01:00.600 --> 0:01:03.480
<v Speaker 1>engage with the question. Even if you can't answer what

0:01:03.640 --> 0:01:06.200
<v Speaker 1>was in John steen Haysen's mind, at least give us

0:01:06.240 --> 0:01:08.800
<v Speaker 1>your view on the significance of the omission.

0:01:10.959 --> 0:01:13.640
<v Speaker 2>Well, John, let me explain this to you and maybe

0:01:13.680 --> 0:01:15.440
<v Speaker 2>you will understand when you hear what I've got to

0:01:15.440 --> 0:01:19.959
<v Speaker 2>say with regards to this. John Steynasen is very aggrieved

0:01:20.000 --> 0:01:23.240
<v Speaker 2>by this because this can create a very dangerous president

0:01:23.319 --> 0:01:26.160
<v Speaker 2>tomorrow or next week or next month. The president can

0:01:26.240 --> 0:01:29.640
<v Speaker 2>come and can decide, well, now I'm firing Dean McPherson,

0:01:29.760 --> 0:01:32.480
<v Speaker 2>Now I'm firing sho with Wahube or any of the

0:01:32.520 --> 0:01:36.080
<v Speaker 2>other deputy ministers or Minissa's from the Democratic Alliance. And

0:01:36.120 --> 0:01:39.000
<v Speaker 2>therefore it is not important. The fact that we can

0:01:39.040 --> 0:01:42.400
<v Speaker 2>now appoint another DA person to that portfolio is not

0:01:42.480 --> 0:01:46.000
<v Speaker 2>important at all when you compare it to Manissa's having

0:01:46.000 --> 0:01:49.000
<v Speaker 2>to carry out their duties when they've got this ax

0:01:49.120 --> 0:01:52.720
<v Speaker 2>behind them next all the time. So it's very important

0:01:52.760 --> 0:01:57.240
<v Speaker 2>that we see that into the perspective of having to

0:01:58.440 --> 0:02:01.760
<v Speaker 2>having the right to point another person from the Democratic

0:02:01.800 --> 0:02:05.080
<v Speaker 2>Alliance aside. That is true, no doubt, I mean, that

0:02:05.240 --> 0:02:09.239
<v Speaker 2>is non negotiable, but he should not be done under

0:02:09.280 --> 0:02:10.520
<v Speaker 2>the circumstances like this.

0:02:11.880 --> 0:02:15.200
<v Speaker 1>What aspect of the circumstances are you as the DA

0:02:15.440 --> 0:02:19.280
<v Speaker 1>grieved about because the statement from the presidents, he says,

0:02:19.639 --> 0:02:23.000
<v Speaker 1>it was made very clear to everybody in cabinet that

0:02:23.080 --> 0:02:26.840
<v Speaker 1>you may not travel without permission from the President. Andrew

0:02:26.880 --> 0:02:32.720
<v Speaker 1>Whitfield chose to do that, perhaps not fully cognizant of

0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:35.560
<v Speaker 1>the fact that he was now no longer just the

0:02:35.639 --> 0:02:37.800
<v Speaker 1>DA leader in the Eastern Cape. It was member of

0:02:37.840 --> 0:02:40.440
<v Speaker 1>the executive by the way, let me put this to you.

0:02:40.480 --> 0:02:43.840
<v Speaker 1>In addition, mister Oakom, it wasn't just any trip. The

0:02:43.960 --> 0:02:49.800
<v Speaker 1>context was a very very tense situation where other people

0:02:49.840 --> 0:02:54.840
<v Speaker 1>from political actors from South Africa were visiting Washington.

0:02:54.919 --> 0:02:55.200
<v Speaker 2>D C.

0:02:55.639 --> 0:02:57.520
<v Speaker 1>Surely saw the implications of that.

0:02:59.000 --> 0:03:02.079
<v Speaker 2>Well. Mister Whitfield did write a letter to the President

0:03:02.200 --> 0:03:04.640
<v Speaker 2>when he returned and learned that the President is not

0:03:04.720 --> 0:03:07.320
<v Speaker 2>happy with this. He wrote a letter to the President

0:03:07.360 --> 0:03:11.280
<v Speaker 2>in which he apologized if it caused any inconvenience to

0:03:11.320 --> 0:03:14.280
<v Speaker 2>the President. That letter also, by the way, he has

0:03:14.320 --> 0:03:17.680
<v Speaker 2>not received any reply to from the President, just as

0:03:17.800 --> 0:03:20.919
<v Speaker 2>Vincent mcgwena could not now tell you why the President

0:03:21.160 --> 0:03:26.079
<v Speaker 2>did not answer his initial application. So mister Whitfield did apologize.

0:03:26.280 --> 0:03:28.120
<v Speaker 2>I think it might have been a mistake on his

0:03:28.280 --> 0:03:31.360
<v Speaker 2>part to think, well, maybe I can go. But it

0:03:31.480 --> 0:03:34.440
<v Speaker 2>needs to be put on record that since the only

0:03:34.480 --> 0:03:38.480
<v Speaker 2>twelve of February, Andrew Whitfield wrote to the President ten

0:03:38.600 --> 0:03:41.960
<v Speaker 2>days thereafter, he has still not received an answer, and

0:03:42.000 --> 0:03:45.200
<v Speaker 2>he followed up with the presidency on a daily basis.

0:03:45.400 --> 0:03:48.600
<v Speaker 2>So one needs to answer the question, and Vincent macgwenha

0:03:48.640 --> 0:03:51.160
<v Speaker 2>tried to duck and dive that answer, and that is

0:03:51.280 --> 0:03:53.640
<v Speaker 2>why didn't the President just say, well, I do not

0:03:53.760 --> 0:03:54.600
<v Speaker 2>give you permission.

0:03:55.200 --> 0:04:00.000
<v Speaker 1>So, mister, what did he apologize for? Because you said

0:04:00.200 --> 0:04:04.960
<v Speaker 1>if this caused any inconvenience, which is extremely vague. Did

0:04:04.960 --> 0:04:08.880
<v Speaker 1>he apologize and say I recognize that I broke rules

0:04:08.880 --> 0:04:12.200
<v Speaker 1>that were made clear to me in my induction process

0:04:12.280 --> 0:04:15.920
<v Speaker 1>and subsequently in other engagements. Or did he say, well,

0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:19.760
<v Speaker 1>I'm sorry if I've caused an inconvenience, Because that are

0:04:19.760 --> 0:04:22.520
<v Speaker 1>two very different things. What did he say in his apology?

0:04:23.839 --> 0:04:26.640
<v Speaker 2>John, I did not read the apology letter. I must

0:04:26.680 --> 0:04:28.400
<v Speaker 2>be honest with you in that regard, so I can't

0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:30.520
<v Speaker 2>tell you exactly what was said. The fact is that

0:04:30.560 --> 0:04:35.120
<v Speaker 2>he did apologize. So whether the apology was a very

0:04:35.160 --> 0:04:38.640
<v Speaker 2>broad apology or a narrow apology admitting to exactly what

0:04:38.640 --> 0:04:40.640
<v Speaker 2>he did wrong, I cannot tell you that. But the

0:04:40.760 --> 0:04:44.680
<v Speaker 2>mere fact that he gave an apology to the president,

0:04:44.760 --> 0:04:48.560
<v Speaker 2>and remember that was done four months ago. So why

0:04:48.640 --> 0:04:51.640
<v Speaker 2>in four months time. When the President received this letter,

0:04:51.720 --> 0:04:53.800
<v Speaker 2>he could have immediately this most team. If you wanted to,

0:04:54.160 --> 0:04:56.880
<v Speaker 2>why wait four months? I can tell you why it was.

0:04:57.720 --> 0:05:00.320
<v Speaker 2>Why they've waited four months. Look at the word that

0:05:00.839 --> 0:05:03.600
<v Speaker 2>Andrew Whitfield is doing in that department. Look at the

0:05:03.680 --> 0:05:06.760
<v Speaker 2>awarding of the standard of more than sixty billion rand

0:05:07.080 --> 0:05:10.440
<v Speaker 2>at the lottery commission that was awarded to the sister

0:05:10.560 --> 0:05:13.120
<v Speaker 2>in law of our Deputy President. I can tell you

0:05:13.160 --> 0:05:15.479
<v Speaker 2>that they are afraid of the questions that he would

0:05:15.520 --> 0:05:18.760
<v Speaker 2>have asked as the deputy Minister with regards to that contract.

0:05:20.279 --> 0:05:24.360
<v Speaker 1>So just watching the clock a little bit, mester, Oh come,

0:05:24.760 --> 0:05:27.479
<v Speaker 1>what can you tell us about what the DA is

0:05:27.680 --> 0:05:31.360
<v Speaker 1>likely to announce by way of its decision tomorrow? Has

0:05:31.400 --> 0:05:33.680
<v Speaker 1>the party made up its mind what it does next?

0:05:34.520 --> 0:05:37.680
<v Speaker 2>No, the party has not yet. We our Federal Executive

0:05:37.839 --> 0:05:41.560
<v Speaker 2>will convene tomorrow. We will discuss the situation, look at

0:05:41.920 --> 0:05:45.280
<v Speaker 2>everything that transpired, and we will make an informed decision

0:05:45.600 --> 0:05:49.000
<v Speaker 2>which we will then convey to the public tomorrow afternoon

0:05:49.040 --> 0:05:51.359
<v Speaker 2>three o'clock in a press briefing that will take place

0:05:51.400 --> 0:05:54.880
<v Speaker 2>in Cape Town that has been announced to the public already.

0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:58.840
<v Speaker 1>Philly, Oh come, thank you, DA National spokesperson twenty five

0:05:58.960 --> 0:05:59.960
<v Speaker 1>minutes past five