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The new Minister of Fisheries (including Agriculture and Forestry) is Mr Senzeni Zokwana. Mr Zokwana is the President of the National Union of Mineworkers and the Chairperson of the SA Communist Party.                                 Mr Senzeni Zokwana: Minister of DAFF Mr Zokwana's deputy minister is Bheki Cele. Mr Zokwana's will quickly learn of the major disaster that is fisheries, which he has inherited from Tina Joemat-Pettersson in the next week. Not only does he have to start with a review application setting aside the 2013 Fishing Rights Allocation Process, he has to tell South Africa's fishing industry what he plans to do about the 2015 rights allocation process, which his department is about 2 years behind schedule in its preparations - not to mention the abalone rights allocation process which is less than 65 days away! And on top of that, he has a Fisheries Branch in turmoil, wracked by...

According to the Minister of Fisheries, our 303 abalone fishers must not worry if their fishery is unilaterally closed in the next 60 days ... because they will instead be allowed to catch .... RED STEENBRAS! The Minister of Fisheries must have completely lost her marbles. Did this foolish Minister forget that the traditional line fishery is in a state of environmental crisis? Is she unaware that the 300 abalone divers harvest approximately 90 tons (at least) of abalone worth nothing less than R250/kg to R350/kg while steenbras catches have not exceeded 8 tons since 2002 according to her own department's records? Not to mention that steenbras does not sell for anything more than R10-15/kg? So how are 300 abalone right holders to survive on 8 tons of steenbras worth R15/kg!! With this level of stupidity running DAFF, is it any wonder why our fisheries are in such a state of chaos and collapse.

Die Burger newspaper reports this morning that in an exclusive interview with the paper, the Fisheries Minister makes the shocking revelation that the abalone fishery may in fact be closed! Again. And AGAIN without any prior consultation or communication with communities and right holders.  Marthinus van Schalkwyk closed the fishery back in 2007 on poor advice and without consulting communities and right holders, only for Joemat-Pettersson to re-open it 2 years later - clearly admitting that there was never any scientific justification for the closure in the first place. And during the 2 year closure period, we saw poaching skyrocket to an estimated 4000 tons annually. The reality of course was that the poachers benefitted hugely from the sudden and unregulated closure, which is what we face again. History and its lessons are certainly irrelevant to our Fisheries Minister and her advisers.  Just like Van Schalkwyk, who promised that abalone right holders will be acco...

The most recent news coming out of the fisheries department (besides the admission that they completely cocked up an entire rights allocation process which has to be re-done at huge cost to the taxpayer and the SA fishing industry), is that there is serious talk that the Fisheries Branch will either revert back to the Department of Environmental Affairs or be established as a stand-alone new ministry!  Exclamation mark, indeed. Only 5 years ago, I drafted an opinion which was submitted to the President   (I was told) explaining why fisheries and environmental affairs should not be split. Of course, being grossly stupid and naive I explained that the split will run counter to an important principle such as "integrated oceans and marine ecosystem management" and that of course the costs of creating an entire bureaucracy called the Oceans and Coasts Branch in the Environmental Affairs department to essentially oversee sea water (but not the fish), whale watching and shark c...

The report by Attorneys firm Harris, Nupen & Molebatsi on the legality of the 2013 Fishing Rights Allocation Process (FRAP 2013 / #FRAP2013), makes for some sober reading. The extent of the governance failures and maladministration is immensely profound. What makes the findings even worse is the fact that this 2013 process could have been a massively successful one - more so than the 2001 and 205 processes given the foundations of these past processes and that the department was handed a detailed template on which to build a successful 2013 process.  This is not to say that the 2001 and 2005 processes were perfect. Far from. But what is patently clear and beyond any contradiction is that the 2005 process was built on the lessons learnt from the errors and criticisms of the 2001 process, which made the 2005 process the success it remains. Of course, not every applicant, let alone fisherman was going to get a right. No responsible and sustainable quota allocation process wil...

I must have received about 70 phone calls yesterday afternoon, many "congratulating" Feike on the fact that we were right all along that a fair and lawful fishing rights allocation process was simply never going to be possible in 2013. It's hardly a moment to be happy or glad. The announcement yesterday by the minister of fisheries that the entire 2013 FRAP would be set aside is yet another tragic event in the history of the (mis)management of our fishery resources under this shockingly incompetent minister and her administration. The decision to scrap an entire rights allocation process is just another dubious record for this incorrigible and destructive minister. She was the first ever minister in our history to preside over the destruction of our entire fleet of patrol and research and vessels and now she becomes the first-ever minister to preside over the setting aside of an entire fishing rights allocation process - despite being handed a handbook on fishing rights ...

There is this most memorable scene from Mel Brookes' " History of the World " set during the "Roman Empire" which has remained with me since the very first time I saw the movie in my uncle's bioscope in Kliptown, Johannesburg, during the 1980's. I was way too young for the age restricted Mel Brookes but the Apartheid government banned this movie so we had to watch it in my uncle's "protest" movie house (which also showed all the other banned movies like Black Beauty!). Anyway, back to the genius of Mr Brookes. The scene is set. The Roman Senate is called to session and the Head of the Senate passionately stands and asks his fellow senators, "Shall we continue to build palace after palace for rich! Or shall we aspire to a more noble cause and build decent housing for the poor! How does the Senate VOTE?" One second passes and the senators rejoice in unison with arms raised and fists clenched "FUCK THE POOR!" Indee...