Justice and correctional services minister Ronald Lamola will announce this week whether the contract the correctional services department entered into with security company G4S will be cancelled.
Speaking on the sidelines of a state visit by Namibian President Hage Geingob at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Thursday, Lamola said: “We have read the contract. We are seeking legal advice on the contract, because if we act on emotions and just wake up and cancel the contract, the possibility of us harming the livelihoods of the remaining inmates is high.
“We need to follow the terms of the contract or whatever that may necessitate the cancellation of the contract."
Lamola, G4S and the police have been under fire after “Facebook rapist” and murderer Thabo Bester escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre run by G4S in May 2022.
“We also have to assess our own capacity to take it over if we cancel, because there are more than 500 employees, more than 2,900 inmates, there are systems and facilities that must be run, so if you just wake up and say you are cancelling the contract, you must have the capacity to take over,” he said.
Decision on G4S contract to be announced this week — Lamola
Security company under fire after escape of 'Facebook rapist' Thabo Bester from Mangaung Correctional Centre
Image: Ntswe Mokoena/GCIS
Justice and correctional services minister Ronald Lamola will announce this week whether the contract the correctional services department entered into with security company G4S will be cancelled.
Speaking on the sidelines of a state visit by Namibian President Hage Geingob at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Thursday, Lamola said: “We have read the contract. We are seeking legal advice on the contract, because if we act on emotions and just wake up and cancel the contract, the possibility of us harming the livelihoods of the remaining inmates is high.
“We need to follow the terms of the contract or whatever that may necessitate the cancellation of the contract."
Lamola, G4S and the police have been under fire after “Facebook rapist” and murderer Thabo Bester escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre run by G4S in May 2022.
“We also have to assess our own capacity to take it over if we cancel, because there are more than 500 employees, more than 2,900 inmates, there are systems and facilities that must be run, so if you just wake up and say you are cancelling the contract, you must have the capacity to take over,” he said.
'I think at this point an apology is enough': Lamola responds to calls for him to step down over Bester's escape
“We will announce before the end of this week that this is the decision with regards to the cancellation and this is our assessment of our own capacity to take over, if indeed we decide to cancel.”
Asked whether the department was investigating its own staff who may have played a role in the escape, Lamola said: “Whoever was helping him to do whatever was alleged and what we found in terms of our own investigations, it has been mostly G4S officials who are running and operating the facility and you would have seen some of them being arrested.
“There could be more arrests, especially officials who work for G4S that helped to facilitate this.
“Internally, we have been dealing with our own officials, particularly those who were responsible to monitor and control the contract and where there have been lapses.”
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